Whether you're a relatively new expatriate now living in Singapore, or you've been residing in the Lion City for years now, it can pay to refresh your memory when it comes to important aspects of life in the city, like medical care. Especially if you have not had any medical problems recently, it can be easy to forget exactly how costly it can be when one arises. With this in mind, Pacific Prime Singapore would like to present this article on the top ways to address medical costs in 2018. Specifically, we'll be talking about the best health insurance solutions out there, with some additional discussion of publicly subsidized healthcare.
Medisave/MediShield Life
Public healthcare facilities in Singapore are actually not available to everyone in the country. Only Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents (PR) are able to access it. A portion of every eligible individual's income is put into a medical savings account, which is intended to meet their future medical costs, as well as those of immediate family members, and even some extended family members. This is known as a Medisave account. There are many specific rules as far as what Medisave funds can and cannot be used for, so be sure to check out the Ministry of Health's website for more information.
MediShield Life is another program administered by the Central Provident Fund Board that protects Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents from particularly costly medical treatment. It works as a basic health insurance that addresses subsidized care in public hospitals, and covers all of those eligible for life, regardless of financial situation.
Keep in mind that expats without PR status will not only not be able to participate in Medisave or Medishield Life programs, but also will not even be able to access public hospitals and clinics. This means that they will have to make use of private medical facilities in Singapore for their medical needs. The costs at these locations are considerably higher than in their public counterparts, so it would be wise to possess health insurance solutions that will cover treatment in them.
Employee health insurance
Many, if not most, expats in Singapore will have a health insurance plan that is sponsored by a business that employs them. If the employer is generous enough, they may even include coverage for employees' immediate family members. Many of these employee health insurance solutions will even have an extra benefit that many individual plans do not, in that they will provide coverage for pre-existing conditions.
This means that any medical conditions that a person has developed before they were on the insurance policy will be covered. With non-group health insurance policies, pre-existing conditions are often excluded, and insurers will not provide benefits for treating any diseases or injuries that developed prior to the policy start date. To be sure, this is a major advantage of employee health insurance solutions.
With that said, it is important to look closely at employee health insurance policy documentation, and ensure that the benefits provided within are up to your standards. Oftentimes employers will leave out some types of coverage in an effort to reduce their annual premium. Commonly excluded coverages include dental insurance, vision insurance, and maternity insurance. Additionally, sometimes the maximum annual benefits provided by such a plan will be lower than a policy member would like. In instances like these, a person can purchase their own separate insurance plan designed to boost benefits specifically in areas where their employee health insurance solutions fall short. This is known as top-up health insurance.
Local health insurance solutions
As mentioned previously, those without employee health insurance, especially those without access to public healthcare, will no doubt want to purchase individual or family health insurance solutions to address their medical costs. As a major financial hub in Asia, Singapore is home to a plethora of top notch insurance companies; many with a large global footprint.
These insurers offer local health insurance solutions for individuals or families that will take care of policyholders inside of Singapore, but there are potentially some drawbacks of this type of plan. Beyond the pre-existing condition issue mentioned before, many local Singapore health insurance plans will limit the number of medical facilities that a policyholder will be covered within in an effort to reduce control medical costs. What's more, these plans generally do not provide coverage outside of Singapore itself. This means that, should you need medical care while travelling abroad, any costs will potentially need to be paid out of pocket.
On the plus side, there are generally various levels of plans available, at a number of different price points, so buyers can get the coverage they are looking for at a price that falls below their budget.
Travel insurance
If you do possess local health insurance solutions of some kind in Singapore, you likely will want to purchase travel insurance when you need to leave the country. The medical aspect of travel insurance will provide you with emergency medical care when you are in an area where you local health insurance will not cover you. These plans can cover the full duration of any travel up to one year, but you will likely need to purchase a separate travel insurance policy each time you leave Singapore.
Beyond emergency medical care, travel insurance plans have additional benefits, such as cash payouts for travel delays or cancellations, and reimbursement for lost or damaged property. However, it is important to note that any coverage only applies while you are traveling. Sometimes a travel insurance policy will provide benefits to get you back to Singapore for medical care, but once you arrive you will need to have other means of paying for care received.
International health insurance solutions
For the most comprehensive coverage with the least stipulations put on where and how you can receive medical care, international health insurance plans are where it's at. These plans are designed to cover you medical costs virtually anywhere in the world, including inside of Singapore. This is ideal for people that travel frequently, whether for business or pleasure. International medical insurance plans are also great for expat families that travel back to their home countries regularly, as they will provide coverage at the hospital or doctor of the policyholder's choosing.
Furthermore, international health insurance plans provide coverage on an ongoing basis, meaning that you will not need to purchase a separate policy each time you travel. As well, international plans will allow you to seek more than just emergency medical care while abroad, including outpatient care. These are the major areas where international medical insurance and travel insurance differ.
The major drawback of this type of health insurance solution is that annual premiums will be considerably higher than those of local health insurance plans.
Securing the best health insurance solutions for you
What's the best health insurance solution for you? That depends on your specific situation. How new are you to the city? Do you have PR status? Even if you do, does the public healthcare system meet your expectations and requirements? Does your employer provide you with insurance, and are the benefits provided to an acceptable level? Do you travel a lot? Do you want to be covered for medical tourism? Answering these and many other questions will help you arrive at the ideal type of health insurance solutions for you and/or your family's needs.
Clearly there is a lot to unpack here, so if you are feeling a little lost, you can always turn to the helpful insurance experts at Pacific Prime Singapore for information. They will gladly analyze your needs and provide you with options from top insurers if you do decide to purchase a health insurance plan. Not only that, but you will be given a free plan comparison and price quotation. Contact us today!
