Factors Considered in Means-testing for Community Health Assist Scheme

The following question stood in the name of Mrs Lina Chiam –

To ask the Minister for Health if the means-testing process for the Community Health Assist Scheme should take into consideration other assets such as bank deposits.

Madam, today, the means-testing process for the Community Health Assist Scheme (CHAS) uses the per capita monthly household income as a way to assess a household's means. This allows the Government to better target subsidies at households who need them more. The income criterion is set such that up to half of Singaporean households qualify for the scheme. For households without any income, the Annual Value (AV) of their residence is taken into consideration as a proxy of their means.

In designing the household means-testing process, we need to strike a balance between being more precise in assessing applicants' means and keeping the process simple for applicants and also administratively practical. While having additional criteria like a household's ownership of other assets like bank deposits will provide a more complete assessment of means, this will make the application process much more onerous.

We thank the Member for her suggestion. My Ministry will continue to regularly review the means-testing process and criteria to ensure that the scheme reaches out to those who need it.