Medisave Top-ups for Patients in Class C and B2 Wards

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song asked the Minister for Health whether the Government can consider providing additional assistance, beyond the $50 to $400 one-off Medisave top-ups, to Class C and B2 patients who have to pay MediShield deductibles of $1,500 and $2,000 respectively (a $500 increase) with effect from 1 March 2013.

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Sir, MediShield is a catastrophic insurance scheme designed to cover larger hospitalisation bills. It complements Medisave, which can be used to pay the annual deductible and co-insurance components under MediShield, and any remaining portion of the bill. MediShield will be enhanced on 1 March 2013 and will include an increase of the MediShield policy year claim limit and lifetime claim limit to $70,000 and $300,000 respectively, to enhance coverage of catastrophic expenses.

To keep premiums affordable, the deductibles for Class B2 and Class C will be raised so that MediShield continues to focus on larger bills while smaller bills can be covered by Medisave or cash.

We understand the concerns about the affordability of the higher deductibles, especially the lower income and elderly. Other than the one-off Medisave top-up of up to $400, eligible elderly also receive annual Medisave top-ups of up to $450 under the GST Voucher scheme, while low-wage workers who qualify for the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) Scheme would receive part of their WIS payouts in their Medisave account. In addition, the Government provides ad hoc Medisave top-ups when the budget situation permits, which have totalled $2.2 billion since 2005.

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The Medisave top-ups are part of the Government's targeted efforts to enhance Singaporeans' Medisave adequacy and help the more vulnerable with their healthcare expenses. Those who still face difficulty managing their healthcare bills can apply for financial assistance from the public healthcare institutions via Medifund. We have topped up Medifund by $600 million, as announced in this year's Budget, and this will provide more help for needy patients.

Sir, I thank the Minister for the reply. I would like to point out that on the MOH website, it says that the Medisave top-ups are to offset the premium increases, not so much the deductible increases. In any case, would MOH consider increasing the Medifund provisions such that more people can tap on the Medifund if they do not have enough Medisave to be able to pay the deductibles?

Sir, let me clarify that there are two Medisave top-ups. The first is the one-time top-up which is meant to help our members pay for the increase in premiums. But there is an ongoing annual GST Voucher for Medisave, up to $450 a year. That is a yearly amount that would go toward paying ongoing cost deductibles as well as medical bills. On Medifund, as I had mentioned in my reply, we have announced a top-up earlier this year during the Budget, by $600 million. That would give us roughly about $15 million to $20 million a year, and this amount would be available for us to help the needy patients, including those who cannot afford to pay for the deductibles.

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