MediShield Life coverage is increasing. Do you still need a Shield plan?

Why are there changes

Administered by the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board, MediShield Life is a basic health insurance that protects all Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents (PRs) against large medical bills and selected costly outpatient treatments. Designed to cover nine in ten subsidised bills at public healthcare institutions, this coverage has now dropped to cover just under eight in ten bills due to the rising medical costs. Changes thus aims to restore MediShield Life’s benefit back to covering nine in ten subsidised bills.

What are the changes

Changes will be implemented progressively from April 2025 onwards with some changes implemented in phases. Here are the key changes to your MediShield Life (MSHL).

1. Coverage limits

The revised MediShield Life will offer better coverage and fully cover nine in ten subsidised bills. For this, MediShield Life will increase claim limits for:

Annual policy claim limit – Increase from $150,000 to $200,000 per year.

Inpatient and day surgery claim limits – Intensive Care Unit Ward (ICU) limit will double and surgical procedure limits will also increase.

Outpatient claim limits – Increase in limits for benefits such as kidney dialysis and radiotherapy for cancer.

2. Expanded coverage

To address medical advancements and the shift in our healthcare needs:

Coverage for new medical technologies – For example, Cell, Tissue, and Gene Therapy Products (CTGTPs).

Home-Based Medical Care – To allow for more convenient care options to be covered.

High-Cost Treatments – Coverage for clinically effective and cost-effective treatments.

3. Deductible and Co-insurance

To moderate premium impact and keep larger bills affordable, new MSHL will implement:

Inpatient deductible – To increase by up to $1,500. This increase will be done in two phases.

Outpatient deductible – New outpatient deductible of $500 will be imposed.

Co-insurance – Reduced from a flat 10 per cent to a tiered structure of 3 to 10 per cent co-insurance to be consistent with how co-insurance is computed for inpatient bills.

Medisave withdrawal limits – Adjusted to allow individuals to use MediSave for co-insurance and revised deductible portion. Example below shows two scenarios with $0 cash outlay after the revised scheme.

4. Premium adjustments

Increase in premiums – This increase will be done in phases starting from April 2025 and up to March 2028. Total premium increase is capped at 35 per cent, and works out to an average of 22 per cent increase per policyholder by the end of the third year. New premiums will take effect upon renewal.

Premium support measures – Government will provide premium support measures (i.e. offset package) and this will offset the cumulative increase in MSHL premiums over the next three years for almost all ages and income levels.

With the changes to MediShield Life, do I still need an Integrated Shield plan?

The new MediShield Life is intended to fully cover nine in ten subsidised bills in public healthcare institutions. If you are comfortable with seeking treatment at Class B2/C wards in public hospitals, then MediShield Life should sufficiently address your needs.

To recap, B2/C wards are naturally ventilated rooms with up to 6 beds in a ward. Rooms may not have attached bathrooms and televisions.

If you are currently only on MediShield Life and would like higher coverage:

Standard Integrated Shield plan (B1 ward)

Designed as a no-frills product, benefits for standard IP plans are determined by the Government and are identical across all IP insurers. This offers a standardised affordable option for additional coverage beyond MediShield Life.

While the standard B1 ward IP plan and the new MediShield Life plan both have an annual policy limit of $200,000, Standard IP offers higher coverage limits for both inpatient and outpatient treatments. Some of the difference in benefits can be found in the table below:

^{Information in table is for illustration purposes only and are non-exhaustive. Please refer to the policy wording for more information. Information retrieved on 21 October 2024.}

Premiums for a Standard B1 ward IP plan:

^{Premiums retrieved on 21 October 2024, and are for illustration purposes only.}

While Standard B1 ward plans are a step up from MediShield Life’s benefits, coverage from these plans are still not as comprehensive as Class A ward or private hospital IP plans. For example, Standard B1 IP plans do not provide as-charged coverage. Pre and post hospitalisation treatments are also not covered in Standard B1 IP plans.

For Class B1 ward entitlements with as-charged coverage and higher benefits, consider Enhanced IncomeShield Basic, Singlife Shield Plan 3, or Raffles Shield B.

(Read: A Guide to assessing your Enhanced IncomeShield plan)

For private hospital treatments, or to further enhance your coverage:

If you would like to get as charged coverage, opt for a Class A or Private hospital IP plan. Not only will this give you as charged coverage for inpatient and outpatient treatments, but you will also receive additional benefits such as coverage for pre and post hospitalisation treatments.

With integrated shield plans, you will get:

Higher annual policy limits – Ranges from $200,000 to $2,000,000.

Different ward entitlements – Receive as charged coverage for class B1 or A ward in public hospitals, or at private hospitals.

Cancer treatment – Get up to 5x MSHL limit with Integrated Shield plans, and up to 23x MSHL limit with the addition of IP riders.

Pre and post hospitalisation treatment – Up to 180 days pre hospitalisation, and up to 365 days post hospitalisation coverage when you seek treatment at insurer’s preferred partners.

Have a question? Click the button below to speak to us:

If you are unsure on which hospitalisation plan you need, or would like a second opinion for your policies.

Read also,

Is private hospital insurance really necessary?

A Guide to assessing your Enhanced IncomeShield plan

PSA: Is the insurance policy your parents bought for you serving you well?

1 in 5 Singaporeans lack life insurance coverage. Are you the 1 in 5?

^{Information obtained from:}

^{https://www.moh.gov.sg/news-highlights/details/government-accepts-medishield-life-council-s-recommendations-to-enhance-medishield-life-scheme---government-support-more-than-offsets-premium-increases}

^{https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/medishield-life-to-offer-higher-claim-limits-better-coverage-premiums-to-rise-from-april-2025}

^{https://www.moh.gov.sg/healthcare-schemes-subsidies/medishield-life/medishield-life-faqs#sisp}

^{Information retrieved on 21 October 2024.}

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