Medisave for denture prescriptions

13 August 2012

Question No. 561

Name of person: Dr Lam Pin Min

Question

To ask the Minister for Health whether Medisave can be utilised for denture prescriptions, and if not, whether the Ministry will consider extending the use of Medisave to do so.

Answer

            Medisave is primarily meant to help pay for Singaporeans’ hospital bills, and approved outpatient treatment such as dialysis or chemotherapy which may incur large bills.  Over the years, we have liberalized the use of Medisave for other medical expenses, for example, chronic disease management.  However, we need to be mindful in expanding the use of Medisave as not to deplete it prematurely. As Medisave needs to support Singaporeans’ long-term healthcare needs, even after retirement, we need to be careful about what it can be used for. 

            For dental treatment, Medisave is currently restricted to dental surgical procedures, and not for non-surgical treatment like dentures.  Nevertheless, government subsidies are available to ensure dentures remain affordable.  Eligible patients can benefit from subsidies for dentures at nearly 220 private dental clinics under the Community Health Assist Scheme (CHAS), or if they are referred to the National Dental Centre (NDC) for subsidised dental services.