What you Need to Know About Health Care Insurance in Singapore
                     What you Need to Know About Health Care Insurance in Singapore 
 
In Singapore health care insurance is considered so important that the government has made it 
compulsory for all individuals. Hence in Singapore health insurance is not negotiable. However, with 
the compulsory insurance provided by the government you can get only basic facilities at public 
hospitals. Of course public hospitals also provide excellent treatment, but they lack in the facilities 
that private hospitals provide. 
The Singaporean government unveiled MediShield in 1990. It is a low-cost basic medical insurance 
program designed to assist people in paying for significant Class B2/C hospitalization expenditures 
for which Medisave alone would not be adequate. Members of MediShield were first opted in 
automatically, however they had the option to opt out if they so desired. 
MediShield Life was introduced in November 2015, 25 years after it first became available. It is an 
improved version of MediShield and, like its predecessor; it is a fundamental health insurance 
program that guards against high medical expenses for all Singapore Citizens (SCs) and Permanent 
Residents (PRs). It is also administered by the Central Provident Fund, and Medisave covers the 
entire premium. 
The fact that MediShield Life covers all pre-existing conditions is one benefit worth highlighting. For 
SCs and PRs with uninsurable diseases like diabetes or heart disease, this is wonderful news. 
While Medishield life is an excellent option for all Singaporean citizens, for foreign citizens medical 
coverage is typically provided by the employer for employees in Singapore who are neither 
Singapore citizens nor Permanent Residents, however it might not be enough. According to the 
Ministry of Manpower, companies are required to pay at least $15,000 annually for each worker's 
medical insurance coverage. Employment Pass (EP) holders must get their own private medical 
insurance because this rule does not apply to them 
Hence whether or not you are a Singaporean citizen or permanent resident, you will get some kind 
of health care insurance from the government or your employers.