Disability insurance schemes, grants help siblings caring for sick elderly parents

Siblings Alvin and Kimberly Yap have been facing medical costs of nearly $4,000 each month since their parents' health took a turn for the worse in 2024.

- Yap Wei Qiang

That year, their 76-year-old father, Mr Ron Yap, was diagnosed with dementia, while their mother, Madam Cecilia Wong, 73, suffered complications following brain surgery, rendering her wheelchair-bound and requiring round-the-clock assistance.

Fortunately for Mr Alvin Yap, 36, and Ms Kimberly Yap, 43, national severe disability insurance schemes, such as CareShield Life and ElderShield, and schemes like the Home Caregiving Grant, provide the family with $1,800 in cash payouts each month. They also benefit from the Migrant Domestic Worker Levy Concession, under which they pay a total monthly levy of $120, instead of up to $750, to hire two helpers to provide dedicated care to both parents.

This is a relief to both Mr Yap, an internal auditor who is married and has a two-year-old son, and Ms Yap, who is married with three children and checks on her parents daily.

Mr Yap's parents live with him, and he is the primary caregiver.