|
|
Question No: 439
Question By: Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng
|
|
To ask the Minister for Health |
|
(a) whether MediShield is self-funded by the
Central Provident Fund; and |
|
(b) how much will it cost to enable families
to cover special needs children (i) born with congenital or pre-existing
illnesses and (ii) attending special schools, to allow them to enjoy the
same health insurance coverage as normal children. |
|
Reply from MOH |
|
Basic MediShield and the enhanced plans
offered by private insurers are all self-funded. In other words, the
premiums collected from policyholders must more than cover the
anticipated payouts claimed by patients. For the plans to be
sustainable, premiums are determined on an actuarially-sound basis. |
|
Persons with congenital illnesses can join
MediShield to obtain coverage for medical treatment that is not related
to their congenital condition. |
|
However, it will be unusual for insurers to
cover pre-existing illnesses or to cover treatment related to congenital
conditions. To do so will be to load the burden on the rest of the
policyholders who may not support a manifold increase in premiums to
take on this additional liability. |
|
More importantly, if MediShield were to
cover pre-existing illnesses, it will encourage potential policyholders
to delay subscription until they are sick. This will defeat the
principle of insurance based on the sharing of burden among
policyholders with similar risk profile. |
|
Nevertheless, some private insurers do
offer cash benefit products which pay lump sum amounts if a baby is
diagnosed with specific congenital anomalies. They include the
Prudential PruSmart Lady's Maternity Rider, HSBC Lady FirstCare, and
NTUC i-Maternity. Subscription to these products must of course be
made prior to the discovery of any known congenital anomaly. |
|
As for children attending special
schools or with special needs, the basis of coverage is the same as
the basis for other children, that is, they should be healthy at the
point of entry and have no pre-existing illnesses. |
|
We therefore encourage all parents,
including those who have children with special needs, to cover them
under MediShield as soon as possible, before they develop any other
illnesses that could disqualify them in future. |
|
Source:
www.moh.gov.sg News 12 Nov 2007 |
|
 |
|
Important
Notice |
|
Our FrontPage
Editions are a historical record of our Web site and reflect
the changing of the times, and also of our Web site through
time. We do not and will not update the links and stories on
these FrontPages even if they have become obsolete. |
|
FrontPage Edition: Sun 23 December 2007
All rights reserved
