Health complications can arise when you least expect. Without proper planning, finding treatment can be costly, leaving you in financial distress. Having a valid cover guarantees financial and mental freedom. This article explores medical insurance Singapore. Whether you happen to be a resident or a foreigner within Singapore, there are numerous benefits you can accrue from understanding the idea behind medical insurance and the extent of cover you can rely on your provider to deliver.
What is Expat Health Insurance?
Expat refers to a health insurance plan that allows foreigners to use Singaporean healthcare facilities. It fundamentally equates to the Integrated Shield Plan for the foreigner. Expats do not receive the government-provided MediShield Life component.
Expat health insurance is available to foreigners who have relocated to Singapore with a valid visa to work and live.
Where Can I Buy?
Only three insurance firms, NTUC IncomeShield, AIA, and Great Eastern, offer Integrated Shield health insurance products for expats and foreigners.
What Does Expat Health Insurance Include?
1. Hospitalization– Your Integrated Shield Plan for Foreigners will cover your hospitalization stays and any surgeries (that have been approved by Singapore’s Ministry of Health). Your health insurance plan will cover your hospitalization ward, Intensive Care Unit (ICU), surgery, pharmaceutical, diagnostics, and other incidental costs.
2. Travel Emergency– Although local health insurance mainly covers you while physically present in Singapore, some plans entails emergency coverage (in life-or-death situations), for example; emergency treatments and evacuations.
3. Outpatient Treatment– Most foreigners’ IP plans include outpatient therapies such as kidney dialysis, erythropoietin, cancer radiation, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and stereotactic radiotherapy. Immunosuppressants, in the case of organ transplant patients and long-term parenteral nourishment, are two other outpatient treatments that you can receive.
4. Pre–Hospitalization- If your insurance provider has approved your hospitalization stay and the therapies you get during your stay, you can begin making claims for your pre-hospitalization treatments as well.
5. Post–Hospitalization– You will almost certainly need follow-up treatments or frequent prescriptions after discharge from the hospital. You would be allowed to claim these post-hospitalization therapies if your doctor recommended you to an insurance-approved facility.
Expat Insurance plans for Foreigners
· AIA HealthShield Gold Max
AIA HealthShield Gold Max (For Foreigners) is an AIA HealthShield Integrated Shield Plan. A, B, B light, and Standard are the four options. For foreigners living in Singapore, however, only Plan A, the highest category, is accessible. It covers private hospital coverage for inpatient and surgical treatments and unique features, including prolonged post-hospitalization therapy coverage.
· NTUC IncomeShield
NTUC IncomeShield is a four-tiered integrated insurance plan, three of which are offered to foreigners (Preferred, Advantage, and Basic). Hospitalization and surgical procedures are covered, and outpatient therapies, including radiotherapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and pregnancy and childbirth issues.
· Great Eastern’s SupremeHealth
SupremeHealth from Great Eastern is a four-tiered Integrated Shield Plan: Standard, B Plus, A Plus, and P Plus. For expats living in Singapore, only the SupremeHealth P Plus is available. Access to exclusive hospital wards, a medical concierge service called HealthConnect, and cheap rates priced below the market average are among its perks.
Bottom Line
If you plan to relocate to Singapore, it would be wise to understand its health insurance basics. Being an expat, you can still enjoy several benefits on your cover. Talk to your provider to fully comprehend how your insurance cover can help you save during emergencies.
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