Healthcare

HERE LIES RICA'S FAVOURITE SURGERY OPERATION / PARASITE REMOVAL VIDEOS PLS WATCH TO FEEL BETTER





concept: types of funding

  • self-financed
  • insurance-financed
  • tax-financed

balance point

context:

  • 1960s need to provide basic healthcare, plus prevent infectious disseases (tuberculosis)
  • 1970s economy improved healthcare improved: wider range of healthcare could be provided (e.g. med checkups for babies) gd location of polyclinics, improvement of facilities
  • onwards: popln and sol increase, along w cost of healthcare
    focus on long term healthcare

why government intervention

affordability

challenges

uncertain (expenses are unpredictable)

ageing population

dealing w more than one chronic disease

more frequent checkups and hospital admissions (increased spending citizens might not be able to afford)

basic healthcare services are important

merit good

ensure quality of healthcare + safety of citizens

benefits

direct economic benefits

hard to plan for

if left to private industry along,
prices in healthcare sectors
would be very high

may not save enough for future expenses/save too much (waste)

healthier ==> more productive

people of less fortunate backgrounds would not be able to afford = cannot get proper treatment = higher death rate

thus, government would have to intervene to ensure that healthcare which is a basic need is affordable to all regardless of the ability to pay or not

fewer man-hours lost

(overall it saves time to go for checkups early and prevent illnesses/treat early, compared to waiting until it's serious and hard to cure. the latter would also cause lower productivity during the working hours as well)

merit good is a good or service that consumers frequently under-consume as they tend to underestimate the full benefits of consumption due to imperfect information

many forms of treatment which are unsafe

predicting healthcare expenses
over the course of one's life

regulations to ensure safe practices

consumption of said goods would bring spillover benefits to society

healthcare workers need to go through education and be awarded recognised certs to work + go through training each year to retain their license

people are unsure how much exactly to set aside

  • too little = not enough to pay if get into major accident
  • too much = lots of money gone to waste

healthcare brings direct benefits to the country

ensure doctors are qualified, safe and effective treatments

healthier country = more productive work = fewer man-hours lost

types of government intervention

subsidies

people more productive = more work done = economic growth

Medisave

Medishield

Medifund

up to 80%

personal responsibility

people take their health lightly/for granted

for those who cant pay despite all of those above

either not aware of how their actions might harm their health, or complacent/do not care/short-sighted

low-income workers / poor families / self-employed people (do not make any CPF contributions = no Medisave)

gov needs to raise awareness, encourage citizens to care for their health (promote healthy diet, promote exercise)

let's fight diabetes, healthier option label, activeSG app encouraging people to walk more, 365 app encouraging ppl to buy healthier options

long term treatment of more serious illnesses, unable to pay for hospitalisation, treatment

a national healthcare insurance scheme

pay for it via Medisave

use Medishield when Medisave doesn't cover it (not enough money for surgery etc)

worsens the problem above^^^

healthcare is expensive,,there is a dilemna:

  • gov pays more (will result in higher taxes)
  • personal payment ^^ (lower taxes but sick ppl suffer)

highlights the imptance of taking care of one's health,, wd decrease the need of spending on healthcare

automatically covers someone unless opt-out
=> less costly + increases risk pooling => affordable

(depends on ward: Class C wards have highest subsidies)
^cos subsidies are intended to help Lower income families

medishield life

used to encourage self-reliance + responsible for their own health

low-mid income fams

  • up to 70% subsidies: visit specialists in public hospitals
  • subsidies rate at participating GP and dental clinics

certain amount of money to transferred from
CPF every month to Medisave accounts
=> better able to pay for healthcare

share the costs of healthcare with the government
= shared responsibility

allows all singaporeans access to healthcare: alleviate the impacts of income inequality

medishield life

offers higher claim limits for hospital bills and outpatient cancer treatments like chemotherapy.


no lifetime claim limit for MediShield Life, meaning you are covered until death.

covers pre-existing medical conditions (ie ; congenital problems or HIV)

extra benefits to the elderly: e.g. above 80 dont need to pay premiums, above 70 only need to pay half of the premium

we work = insurance = CPF = part of CPF got to medisave = medical insurance = medisave can buy medishield (better insurance can pay for surgery)

infrastructure limitations

under-/over-confidence in one's own health

higher demand for medical facilities --> higher expenditure by gov to build more facilities + provide more subsidies

shrinking workforce, reduction in productivity,

strain on SG economy

changes in type of healthcare needed

healthcare manpower

use private sector to reduce waiting time @ public hospitals

foreign doctors and nurses to help meet healthcare
(who ask them make medicine so hard to get into, this is their fault ngl)

long waiting time = self service kiosks (get your ticket number)
make appointments online

(refer to ageing p)

e.g. number and size of hospitals

long waiting queue for A&E in gov hospitals

longer waiting time for available beds for hospitalisation

Global Spread of Diseases

aggravated by the fact that SG is very involved in

  • global trade (topics 1&2)
  • tourism

without government intervention


  • citizens would have a hard time paying for medical bills (pay for medication, service, tech, transport etc)
  • if not there would be no standardization (diff towns diff ways)
  • high costs of drugs (free market approach)
  • hospitals are for-profit

movement of ppl/goods across borders

COVID-19, Zika, Ebola, SARS

e.g. CHAS Community Health Assist Scheme (esp benefits pioneer gen and low income fams)