No S’porean will be deprived of medical treatment: Dr Amy Khor

SINGAPORE: Minister of State for Health and Manpower, Dr Amy Khor said no Singaporean will be deprived of medical treatment just because they cannot afford to pay for their healthcare.

Speaking at the Punggol East by—election rally for the People’s Action Party, Dr Khor stressed this is possible with the combination of heavy government subsidies on its health policies — Medisave and Medifund.

Addressing the issue of rising healthcare costs, Dr Khor acknowledged the government’s healthcare financing is not perfect, but the system has served Singaporeans well.

She said the Health Ministry will continue to review the healthcare financing policies to ensure healthcare remains affordable and accessible to every Singaporean.

Dr Khor also responded to proposals from the opposition for unrestricted use of Medisave.

She said: "Medisave is a patient’s hard earned savings so we should not lightly propose unrestricted use of Medisave from age 75. This could lead to premature depletion of Medisave as our life expectancy gets longer. So it’s better that the government steps in to help with Medifund and other assistance programmes if the elderly have problems with their medical bills."

— CNA/xq