How to use MediSave to cover your outpatient costs

Everyone in Singapore has MediSave, but do you know what and how you can use it? Find out more on how you can use your MediSave for various medical services including outpatient costs.

In Singapore, MediSave is a national savings scheme that helps individuals set aside part of their income to pay for their personal or dependents’ hospitalisation, day surgery, certain outpatient expenses, and old age healthcare needs.

What can MediSave be used for?

Here’s a list of things that MediSave can be used for:

Premium payments for Medishield Life, Integrated Shield Plans and ElderShield or CareShield Life

You can use MediSave to pay for your own health insurance premiums, or those of your approved dependents. MediShield Life and ElderShield or CareShield Life premiums can be covered fully by MediSave.

You can also use MediSave to pay for Integrated Shield Plan (ISPs) and ElderShield Supplement premiums, up to withdrawal limits.

Inpatient care

You can use MediSave to pay for your own or approved dependents’ hospitalisation expenses in Singapore.

The total MediSave claimable for a given inpatient or day surgery episode is the sum of the daily hospital charge limit and the surgical limit.

Daily hospital limit

The inpatient daily hospital limit applies if the patient is admitted to the hospital for at least eight hours, while the day surgery limit applies if a patient undergoes a surgical operation listed under the Table of Surgical Procedures and is admitted and discharged within the same day. The claim limits are as follows:

Inpatient episodes

Up to $550 for the first two days of admission and $400 per day from the third day onwards for daily hospital charges, in addition to any surgical limit applicable (below).

Inpatient psychiatric episodes

Up to $150 per day for daily hospital charges, subject to a maximum of $5,000 a year.

Approved day surgeries

Up to $300 per day for daily hospital charges, in addition to the surgical limit (below).

Surgical limit (inpatient and day surgery)

The surgical limit depends on the complexity of the operation, according to the Table of Surgical Procedures (TOSP), as given below. See the TOSP for the full list of surgeries and their MediSave withdrawal limits.

Colonoscopy Screenings

MediSave can be used for screening colonoscopies where recommended, subject to the prevailing TOSP withdrawal limit for colonoscopy procedures plus $300 per day for associated day surgery charges.

Inpatient stay at other settings

• Stay in approved community hospitals
  • Up to $250 per day for daily hospital charges, subject to a maximum of $5,000 a year.
• Stay in approved convalescent hospitals
  • Up to $50 per day for daily hospital charges, subject to a maximum of $3,000 a year.
• Treatment in approved day hospitals
  • Up to $150 per day for daily hospital charges, subject to a maximum of $3,000 a year.

Colonoscopy Screenings

You can use MediSave for screening colonoscopies where recommended, subject to the prevailing TOSP withdrawal limit for colonoscopy procedures plus $300 per day for associated day surgery charges.

Inpatient stay at other settings

• Stay in approved community hospitals
  • Up to $250 per day for daily hospital charges, subject to a maximum of $5,000 a year.
• Stay in approved convalescent hospitals
  • Up to $50 per day for daily hospital charges, subject to a maximum of $3,000 a year.
• Treatment in approved day hospitals
  • Up to $150 per day for daily hospital charges, subject to a maximum of $3,000 a year.

Treatments to help with conceiving, pregnancy and delivery expenses

MediSave Maternity Package

Apart from the prevailing inpatient withdrawal limits, you are also entitled to an additional $900 for pre-delivery medical expenses.

Find out more about Marriage and Parenthood Schemes here.

Assisted Conception Procedures (ACP)

You can also use MediSave for ACP treatment cycles regardless of whether treatment is received in an inpatient or outpatient setting.

Only the patient’s and her spouse’s MediSave accounts may be used. The withdrawal limits are:

• 1st cycle – $6,000
• 2nd cycle – $5,000
• 3rd and subsequent cycles – $4,000

A lifetime MediSave withdrawal limit of $15,000 per patient for ACP also applies.

Long Term Care

Stay in approved inpatient hospice palliative care services (IHPCS)

Up to S$250 per day for general palliative care, and up to $350 per day for specialised palliative care

Day Rehabilitation at approved day rehabilitation centres

Up to $25 per day for day rehabilitation charges, subject to a maximum of $1,500 a year

Home palliative and day hospice care

A combined lifetime withdrawal limit of $2,500 per patient for day hospice and home palliative care (adults and paediatrics).

For day hospice and adult home palliative care patients diagnosed with terminal cancer or end-stage organ failure, there will not be any withdrawal limit if the bill is paid using the patient’s own MediSave account.

MediSave Care

From 2020, severely disabled Singapore Residents aged 30 and above will be able to withdraw up to $200 per month for their long-term care needs.

The withdrawal quantum depends on the MediSave balance at the point of monthly withdrawal, as given below.

MediSave Balance	Monthly Withdrawal Quantum
$20,000	$200
$15,000 and above	$150
$10,000 and above	$100
$5,000 and above	$50
Below $5,000	Nil

This article was first published in homage.

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