Healthcare costs
New Integrated Shield riders: Should you make a switch?
Riders are cheaper but increase out-of-pocket costs. Is the switch worth it? What are the hidden costs and cancer coverage changes?
Plans to release land for private hospital in eastern S’pore, first in almost 20 years: Ong Ye Kung
The proposed hospital would have a capacity for between 300 and 400 hospital beds
Demographic trends challenge IP insurers’ sustainability
Singapore is expected to reach ‘super-aged’ status this year, and an ageing population will suffer more chronic diseases and need healthcare
Some IP insurers hike premiums of base plans for private hospital and A-class wards
This comes after launch of new, cheaper riders which do not cover deductibles, the latest effort to curb ‘buffet syndrome’
New IP rider premiums to cost at least 30% less, with one insurer offering an 84% reduction
All seven insurers will be launching new Integrated Shield Plan rider products by Apr 1
Budget 2026: MOH to extend MediShield Life to selected preventive surgeries, revamp MediSave scheme
An AI tool to help doctors flag Healthier SG enrollees at high risk of chronic disease will also be rolled out
Government took action on IP riders after spotting potential ‘serious market failure’: Ong Ye Kung
Private hospital IP rider premiums have grown at an average of 17% annually for the past three years, double that of IP premiums
The American affordability crisis: Competing diagnoses, divergent remedies
Finding workable solutions will require moving beyond ideological commitments to evidence-based evaluation
Integrated Shield dilemmas: Insurance body tackles consumers’ key concerns
Life Insurance Association answers questions on premiums, riders and when to review IPs
What obesity and palliative care reveal about the economies of health and healthcare
Should interventions aimed at improving health and alleviating suffering not be valued equally?
