Increased subsidies to benefit more Singaporeans amid rising medical costs

Subsidies for dental, long-term care to rise; higher MediSave limit for outpatient needs

- Salma Khalik

Government spending on healthcare is expected to shoot up from the $21 billion set aside for 2025 to more than $30 billion by 2030.

To help people afford the healthcare they need as costs keep rising, the Government will increase subsidies for dental and long-term care, and also increase the amount they can use from their MediSave accounts to pay for their outpatient treatments.

Healthcare capacity will also be expanded to meet rising demand, even as the Government invests in preventive health efforts for the population, such as Grow Well SG, which aims to inculcate healthy habits in children and adolescents.

Speaking at the debate on his ministry's budget, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said that while the Government cannot let healthcare expenditure rise uncontrollably, "it is very difficult to rein in escalating healthcare expenditure, especially when it is a matter of life and death for ourselves and our loved ones".

The S+3Ms framework - subsidies, national insurance scheme MediShield Life, compulsory medical savings MediSave, and safety net for the poor MediFund - helps to cushion patients against increases in healthcare costs.

He said: "Today, seven in 10 patients in subsidised hospital wards pay nothing out of pocket, while eight in 10 pay less than $100." As part of the constant review and enhancement of the S+3Ms, the Government will allow more MediSave funds to be used for outpatient treatments.

MediSave withdrawal for outpatient scans, such as magnetic resonance imaging scans, will go up from $300 a year now to $600 from January 2026.

The $300 a year that Singaporeans 60 years old and above can use for outpatient needs under the Flexi-MediSave scheme will be raised to $400 from October 2025.