Social welfare

• Ms. Anthea Ong questioned the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth on the disbursement of public monies to Citizens’ Consultative Committees (CCCs) and Community Development and Welfare Funds (CDWFs) over the last three years, including breakdowns, eligibility criteria, assistance amounts and duration, and application processes for these and the CCC ComCare Fund (CCF).
• The Minister clarified that elected MPs represent constituents in Parliament and manage town councils, while Grassroots Advisors (GRAs) are appointed by the People’s Association to guide grassroots organizations in implementing government policies and programs.
• CCCs and CDWF committees, appointed by the PA, administer funds based on established criteria, with CDWF providing community bonding and welfare assistance to residents in the constituency, and CCF offering up to three months of temporary financial relief capped at $200 per month.
• Residents apply for assistance at Community Centres/Clubs, and if ineligible, the CCC and CDWF committees may involve GRAs to connect them with other support; on average, PA provides about $290,000 to each CCC and $9,000 to each CDWF annually for welfare and community programs.

• Murali Pillai inquired about financial assistance for families with adult special needs members seeking employability or social engagement programs, citing conditions like dyslexia, autism, and Down's Syndrome.
• Desmond Lee outlined support for adults with disabilities through employment services, including SG Enable's career programs, job placement, and a training grant covering up to 90% of course fees.
• Government-funded sheltered workshops and Day Activity Centres offer training and independent living skills, with fee subsidies for low-income families.
• Additional schemes include the Assistive Technology Fund subsidizing devices and transport subsidies to enhance independence and mobility for persons with disabilities.

• Anthea Ong asked whether financial benefits from long-term care schemes affect household income calculations for means-testing and eligibility for ComCare and MediFund, and how the government mitigates opportunity costs.
• Desmond Lee stated that long-term care benefits do not alter household monthly income for means-testing, but are considered when assessing eligibility for ComCare and MediFund, which act as safety nets after other support is exhausted.
• ComCare covers basic living expenses if other assistance is insufficient, while MediFund committees assess applicants holistically, considering higher healthcare costs and support from various schemes to ensure no Singaporean is denied care.

• Gan Thiam Poh asked about HDB rental flat applications over the last five years from specific groups like divorcees, bankrupts, and those facing financial or family difficulties, and whether help can be given to buy Flexi flats.
• Lawrence Wong reported that HDB received about 10,300 rental applications from divorcees from 2015 to September 2019 but does not track other groups mentioned.
• HDB has provided exceptional help, such as flexibility on age requirements, for rental applicants with sufficient budget to buy short-lease 2-room Flexi flats.
• HDB will continue offering rental flats to households with no other housing options or family support.

• Gan Thiam Poh asked the Minister for Manpower for data on the number of appeals received, approved, and rejected over the past five years for using CPF Retirement Account funds for HDB housing loans or flat purchases, and whether CPF and HDB would assist those with rejected appeals.
• The CPF system is designed to support retirement needs, with Ordinary Account funds primarily used for housing, while Retirement Account savings are reserved for retirement payouts after meeting the Basic Retirement Sum, but the CPF Board allows flexibility on case-by-case appeals.
• Over the last five years, the CPF Board approved around 80% of such appeals annually, mainly for cases where Ordinary Account savings were transferred to the Retirement Account after age 55.
• For members whose appeals are rejected, the CPF Board collaborates with HDB to explore alternative assistance, such as reducing or deferring housing instalments to help flat owners manage repayments.

• Liang Eng Hwa asked whether medicine costs in Singapore have increased over the last three years and what the reasons are, and whether the government will consider improving affordability by aligning prices with those in neighbouring countries.
• Health Minister Gan Kim Yong explained that drug pricing depends on factors like patents, alternatives, development costs, market size, and supply chain differences, and noted various measures to manage costs, including aggregated procurement through ALPS and value-based pricing through ACE.
• The government is promoting the appropriate use of medicines by encouraging evidence-based prescribing and generic alternatives, while regularly reviewing and subsidizing more drugs and providing financial support schemes like MediSave, MediShield Life, MediFund, and the Medication Assistance Fund.

• Saktiandi Supaat asked how many CPF members used up the $200 Flexi-MediSave annual limit and suggested reviewing it for older members with frequent outpatient needs.
• The Ministry of Health reported 136,000 eligible seniors fully used the limit in 2018, highlighted recent enhancements like lowering the age to 60, and committed to regular reviews for affordability and sustainability.
• Saktiandi emphasized residents’ concerns that the $200 is quickly exhausted, urging a review and timeline, to which MOH noted most eligible seniors do not fully use the limit but will consider feedback.
• Pritam Singh proposed allowing higher withdrawals for those with larger MediSave balances, and MOH acknowledged the suggestion while noting challenges with differentiated limits and other available schemes.
• MOH reiterated that Flexi-MediSave is part of a broader healthcare financing framework and will continue to be reviewed to balance support for seniors with long-term sustainability.

• Assoc Prof Walter Theseira questioned the shortfall in Public Transport Voucher (PTV) redemption in 2018, the administrative costs and challenges of outreach, and proposed automatic distribution for future vouchers to eligible individuals under schemes like ComCare.
• Senior Parliamentary Secretary Baey Yam Keng highlighted expanded eligibility criteria for the 2019 PTV exercise, outreach efforts through grassroots organizations, and the value of direct engagement to tailor support beyond transport costs.
• The government noted the 2018 PTV take-up rate may not reflect economic needs, as households may choose not to apply despite eligibility, and emphasized ongoing efforts to raise awareness and streamline processes.
• Multiple concessionary fare schemes already support vulnerable groups, but the government remains open to consolidating assistance and using local committees to ensure no gaps in coverage for needy households.

• The government funds pre-schools through the Anchor Operator scheme to ensure affordable and quality education, with five operators currently serving about 60,300 Singapore Citizen children across 570 centres.
• For 2018, the average government grant was about $6,000 per Singapore Citizen child in Anchor Operator centres, with the highest per-child grants given to MY World Preschool, E-Bridge Preschool, and Skool4Kidz.
• The Anchor Operator scheme, introduced in 2009, requires operators to adhere to fee caps, improve quality, invest in teacher development, offer Malay and Tamil language instruction, and support enrolment from low-income families.

• In Academic Year 2018, Autonomous Universities awarded over 34,000 bursaries and scholarships, a significant increase from about 21,000 in AY 2014.
• The government spent $65 million on bursaries in FY2018, enhancing support from AY2020 to cover up to 75% of subsidised tuition fees for Singaporean undergraduates from families with incomes up to $9,000 monthly.
• Autonomous Universities use endowment fund returns and reserves to provide additional financial aid, with criteria varying by institution based on financial need, academic merit, or co-curricular performance.
• In FY2018, Autonomous Universities spent $23 million on bursaries for Singaporean undergraduates from their own funds.

• Assoc Prof Daniel Goh asked if patients can use MediSave for mental health therapy and counselling at public hospitals, which are typically outpatient services.
• Health Minister Gan Kim Yong explained that subsidies are available for these treatments, and under the Chronic Disease Management Programme, patients can withdraw up to $500 per year from MediSave for mental health outpatient care, with an additional $200 for those aged 60 and above via Flexi-MediSave.
• For inpatient stays due to mental health conditions, patients can receive subsidies, MediShield Life coverage, and use MediSave for bills, with medical social workers available for additional financial assistance to ensure no Singaporean is denied care due to cost.

• Christopher de Souza asked the Minister for Health if MediSave can be used more flexibly for maintenance rehabilitation, especially for stroke patients needing long-term care.
• Gan Kim Yong explained that MediSave is primarily for hospitalization savings, and any expansion must ensure Singaporeans have enough funds for that purpose.
• He noted MediSave currently covers active rehabilitation, and since mid-2020, severely disabled patients aged 30+ can withdraw up to $200 monthly from their or their spouse’s MediSave for care needs, including maintenance exercises.
• Patients also receive up to 80% subsidies for non-residential long-term care services, including maintenance exercise, and can seek further help from medical social workers.

• Gan Thiam Poh asked for the number of CPF account holders over the last 10 years who exhausted their MediSave funds and used family members' MediSave or MediFund for medical treatment.
• Gan Kim Yong stated that the government provides MediSave top-ups for seniors and that Singaporeans can use family members' MediSave without exhausting their own, with about 2% of MediSave users having low balances but still using family support between 2016 and 2018.
• The government does not track the number of patients who exhausted family members' MediSave or lacked family support and received MediFund assistance, as MediFund considers cases holistically without requiring full exhaustion of personal or family MediSave.

• Desmond Choo asked about the number of Singaporeans using dementia day care, the capacity-to-demand ratio, and potential subsidies for transportation costs.
• As of June 2019, dementia day care centres had a daily capacity of 3,400 clients, with about 3,100 Singaporeans utilising the services.
• The Ministry of Health provides means-tested subsidies for transport to dementia day care centres for eligible clients.
• The Ministry will continue to monitor demand and support seniors and caregivers in receiving necessary care.
• The response indicates that transportation subsidies are already in place, addressing the query about additional subsidy plans.

• Christopher de Souza queried if subsidies for school bus services are available, particularly for families with multiple children attending school.
• The Ministry of Education's Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) provides financial support for lower-income Singapore Citizen students, covering school fees, textbooks, uniforms, meals, and a 50% subsidy on school bus charges.
• FAS is applied per child, ensuring families with multiple children are not disadvantaged.

• Murali Pillai asked about the number of families with care recipients aged 16 to 64 with cognitive disabilities benefiting from the Foreign Domestic Worker (FDW) levy concession and grant, and steps to reach out to eligible families.
• The government provides two schemes: the FDW Levy Concession, allowing a reduced monthly levy of $60 for families caring for persons with disabilities needing at least one Activity of Daily Living (ADL) assistance, with about 2,300 such families benefiting as of September 2019.
• Previously, the FDW Grant offered an additional $120 monthly cash payment for those needing at least three ADLs, benefiting 996 families; it was replaced in October 2019 by the Home Caregiving Grant, which provides $200 monthly for broader caregiving expenses.
• The Ministry of Social and Family Development has publicized these schemes through Social Service Agencies, media reports, and online platforms to reach families who may benefit.

• Assoc Prof Daniel Goh questioned why the Ministry does not use income per capita for all families to assess preschool subsidies, instead of only for larger families with five or more members.
• Desmond Lee explained that the Early Childhood Development Agency uses household income for most families but allows the per capita approach for larger families with five or more members and three or more dependants, as household income may not reflect their financial means.
• The per capita approach is more involved as it requires assessing the income of all family members in the same residence, and extending it to all families is not necessarily advantageous for smaller households.
• For a 4-member household, the household income and per capita income ceilings are equivalent, so families in this category would fall within the same subsidy tier regardless of the assessment method used.
• The current approach is pragmatic, as it helps larger families without disadvantaging smaller families or imposing a more complex assessment on most households.

• The Minister for Manpower highlighted that while CPF is important for retirement, members also use private savings, housing monetisation schemes, and family support to fund their retirement, with Basic Retirement Sum (BRS) attainment being a key indicator of adequacy.
• The proportion of active CPF members achieving their cohort BRS at age 55 has improved over the last decade from about two in five to more than three in five, indicating positive progress.
• Retirement adequacy is expected to continue improving for younger cohorts due to rising incomes, higher labour force participation, and consequently higher CPF balances and monthly payouts in retirement.
• A recent study noted that younger Singaporeans born in the 1970s had double the median real income and 10 percentage points higher labour force participation compared to those born in the 1950s at the same age, leading to significantly higher CPF balances.

• The Ministry of Education has established dedicated Special Educational Needs (SEN) Support Offices in all Institutes of Higher Learning to provide one-stop services from pre-enrolment to graduation for students with disabilities.
• Students with disabilities can access financial support from the SEN fund to purchase assistive technology and support services, with varying grant limits based on the severity of their impairments.
• IHLs offer career guidance, internship opportunities, and partnerships with organizations like SG Enable for mentorship and job matching to prepare students with disabilities for the workforce.
• Faculty and staff receive training to increase awareness and understanding of SEN, fostering a more inclusive campus culture across all IHLs.
• Pre-enrolment arrangements and information sharing between schools and IHLs help facilitate a smoother transition for students with disabilities into higher education.

The CPF (Amendment) Bill introduces a pilot "Contribute-as-you-Earn" scheme to help self-employed persons make regular MediSave contributions, with the government considering matching contributions for participants. The bill also amends the CPF Act to allow refunds for CPF contributions on repayable conditional wages, such as sign-on bonuses. Additionally, the Retirement Sum Scheme payout duration is shortened from age 95 to 90 to increase monthly payouts, with no reduction for existing recipients.