Khaw Boon Wan: Leave politics out of healthcare
-
Singapore’s Health Minister Mr Khaw Boon Wan is full of praise of Singapore’s healthcare system as he tried to promote it as a model for other countries to emulate at the “Healthcare in Asia” conference.
Sharing the Singapore experience, he said that keeping politics out of healthcare and minimizing market distortions is the key to create a “sustainable” healthcare system in Singapore.
“The more politicians do not speak the truth…for example, ‘healthcare is free, vote for me, I will give you free medicine’……(By saying this), you distort the market because you do not allow facts and rational thinking to surface,” he was quoted as saying in Channel News Asia.
Vijay Vaitheeswaran, health correspondent from the The Economist commented on Singapore:
“The thing to remember about Singapore is that it has an extraordinary value conscious health system with a relatively low spending per GDP and a high contribution by the individual.”
Though Singapore is the second richest country in Asia after Japan and its leaders are the highest paid in the entire world, Singaporeans enjoy few social welfare benefits compared to citizens in other first world countries.
Singapore’s total healthcare spending is a miserable less than four per cent of its GDP, which is a relatively low figure compared to other countries while the state can afford to lose billions of dollars of national reserves in failed overseas investments via its two sovereign wealth funds.
The government has constantly maintained that the public healthcare system is “heavily subsidized” in Singapore.
There is a common saying among Singaporeans – “one can afford to die, but not fall sick in Singapore.”
A single hospital admission, a few days’ stay in the ICU or a major operation in a public hospital will suffice to wipe out the Medisave and savings of some Singaporeans.
With healthcare costs going up, Mr Khaw had encouraged Singaporeans to send their elderly parents to nursing homes in Johor if they cannot afford nursing care here.
His remarks sparked a massive outcry among Singaporeans and he eventually backed down, claiming that he was “misquoted” by the media.
Mr Khaw should not be too concerned about politics being mixed with healthcare in Singapore as there is hardly any politics here to speak of.
There are only two opposition MPs in the Singapore parliament. His party controls 82 out of 84 seats in Parliament and can pass any bills as and when it wishes too.
Perhaps Mr Khaw should remind his audience that Singapore is able to maintain such an “extraordinary value conscious health system” for so long precisely because there is no opposition to hold the PAP to task for spending so little on healthcare in Parliament.
TR March 30, 2010
-
yes. healthcare is very affordable in singapore
the government subsided a lot for us citizens
-
Originally posted by Not4rent:
yes. healthcare is very affordable in singapore
the government subsided a lot for us citizens
-
Originally posted by Dondontan:
that is the truth.
you dun agree?
-
Originally posted by Not4rent:
that is the truth.
you dun agree?
Doubt so. -
Originally posted by Not4rent:
that is the truth.
you dun agree?
Depends how often you fall ill! LOL...
Don't forget Medisave comes from your own CPF pockets!
You seem to pay less, but in actual fact it comes from your own pocket.
Government subsidy not that much, unless you are NSF for life. Even civil servants nowadays do not get free medical treatment. -
Government subsidy not that much, unless you are NSF for life. Even civil servants nowadays do not get free medical treatment.
Very true... We are suppose to purchase our own Medical insurance incase of serious conditions. BTW who would want ot see a MO if they can afford to see a Specialist Doc.
-
Healthcare is nothing political in Singapore.
It's just good business.
-
the only issue in Sg that is not kept out of politics is politics of upgrading!
-
Indeed, Singapore health system is so market oriented that many doctors become money first, patients' suffering last.
For example, a patient that needs a major operation which can make a patient paralyses or even dies if the operation goes wrong. The subsidized patient will still be operated by a newly qualified surgeon who might do the operation first time and the patient has no choice but to accept it as the patient is a subsidized patient.
While a private patient will get a choice of the very senior surgeon to operate. Since both the very senior surgeon and newly qualified surgeon are both the staff of the government hospitals, shouldn't the welfare of the patient be of the first priority instead based on the ability to pay ?
-
Singaporeans siam siam? Go Malaysia! Cheaper, Better and Faster!
-_-" This is what our government is encouraging?
On Friday, there was this 30 minute documentary on this on Channel 8. Sickening.
We want to be a medical hub, but in the end, we do not even have enough beds, medical equipment, and cheap medicine for our own people. -
Originally posted by Junyang700:
Singaporeans siam siam? Go Malaysia! Cheaper, Better and Faster!
-_-" This is what our government is encouraging?
On Friday, there was this 30 minute documentary on this on Channel 8. Sickening.
We want to be a medical hub, but in the end, we do not even have enough beds, medical equipment, and cheap medicine for our own people. -
Malaysia healthcare may not be as good as Singapore, the latest news that govt allowed medisave to be use in some malaysia hospitals is not because that Sg govt is asking Singaporeans to go malaysia for healthcare, but rather, it is because many singaporeans requested the govt to approve it. So, in order to satisfy those who visit malaysia healthcare/hospital regularly, govt approved the use of medisave only on reputated and Int'l medical board certified hospital and healthcare clinics.
Therefore, i feel kind of at odd at time, govt give the permission for use of medisave in malaysia and yet citizen took it negative whereby in the first place, there are many peoples asking for it.
-
Originally posted by angel7030:
Malaysia healthcare may not be as good as Singapore, the latest news that govt allowed medisave to be use in some malaysia hospitals is not because that Sg govt is asking Singaporeans to go malaysia for healthcare, but rather, it is because many singaporeans requested the govt to approve it. So, in order to satisfy those who visit malaysia healthcare/hospital regularly, govt approved the use of medisave only on reputated and Int'l medical board certified hospital and healthcare clinics.
Therefore, i feel kind of at odd at time, govt give the permission for use of medisave in malaysia and yet citizen took it negative whereby in the first place, there are many peoples asking for it.
The agenda of a Taiwanese 'hum' in this SgForum was clearly stated by itself - ‘to make sure the audience moving/divert toward you’ (*1)
Is it any surprise to see that the efforts of the resident CBM here is obviously to sabotage the thread with its flippant and irrelevant replies, and get all attempts at serious discussion to be driven off track - simply to bring attention to its own stupidity ?
With its brain stuck between its ‘Labia Majora’ and ‘Labia Minora’ - and a brain no bigger then the size of its ‘clitoris’ - all it can do is to flap in rapturous idiocy to attract attention to itself as an 'Attention Seeking Whore' fitted with a world class CBM.
