Cancer Drug Claims That Required Additional Documentation Beyond National Claims Processing System

Mr Yip Hon Weng asked the Coordinating Minister for Social Policies and Minister for Health in the past two years (a) how many cancer drug claims for (i) Cancer Drug List (CDL) and (ii) non-CDL drugs, respectively, required additional documentation beyond the national claims processing system; (b) what is the average processing time for such claims; and (c) whether the Ministry is reviewing measures to streamline documentation requirements imposed by insurers.

The Ministry of Health is aware that additional documentation is required for a minority of cancer claims. These usually involve non-CDL drugs where insurers may need additional information, such as whether the treatments have been approved by regulatory authorities or supported by established clinical guidelines. The additional information is requested on a case-by-case basis to ensure that the claim is appropriately and accurately assessed, in order to pay out the correct benefits to the policyholder.

We do not track the number nor the processing duration of cancer claims that require additional documentation outside of the national claims processing system.