Ong Ye Kung 'dismayed' at $52k bid to rent Tampines HDB clinic

It may lead to higher healthcare costs and negate MOH efforts to keep them affordable

- Isabelle Liew and Samantha Lee

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said he was "dismayed" at the $52,188 monthly rental bid for a general practitioner (GP) clinic in a Tampines HDB estate as it may lead to higher healthcare costs for residents.

Going forward, bids for future HDB GP clinics will be assessed using a model that focuses less on price, and more on quality of care, he said in a Facebook post on June 4.

Mr Ong said the high rental bid would "translate to higher cost of healthcare one way or another" and negate the Ministry of Health's (MOH) efforts to keep the cost of primary healthcare affordable.

"More importantly, higher rental bids do not necessarily translate to the best healthcare that the community needs," he added.

I-Health Medical Holdings had won the tender to operate the 52 sq m ground-floor unit at Block 954C Tampines Street 96 in March.

But the issue recently came to public attention after a doctor called the $52,188 monthly rent "obscene" in a LinkedIn post.

It sparked discussion over rising rentals and healthcare costs.

Mr Andrew Chim, 37, the co-owner of I-Health Medical Holdings, had told The Straits Times that his bid was justified because of the attractive attributes of the area.

The unit is in the middle of five Build-To-Order projects with 5,000 households, and near upcoming developments like a new mixed-use project and a shopping mall, he said.

On June 4, Mr Ong pointed to the new tender approach for GP clinics that MOH and the Housing Board had launched at the Bartley Beacon development in May.