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| "Indicative premiums" for a middle-income family |
The charade is starting to resemble a seafood meal gone bad at Newtown Circus, where the scamster won't show you the price except to say it's according to market rate. Who ordered the removal of the $300,000 lifetime claim limit, increase of yearly claim limit from current $70,000 to $100,000, or increased daily claim limits for normal hospital wards? Who wants to partake of Alaskan crab when three meals a day - at hawker center, food court or restaurant - is already a daily struggle?
And then there's this subsidy card they like to play, treating the citizenry like fools who will fall for the trickery, again and again. What's the use of a temporal "transitional subsidy" when the full force of the hefty bill will hit after a brief respite?
When Medishield Life Review Committee chairman Chin was asked why there are no premium rebates for those who maintain good health, never had to see the doctor for a cough or a cold, he said the committee did not want people to forgo necessary treatment just to get a no-claim bonus, "We want to encourage good lifestyles... but not through the Medishield framework". Does that suspiciously sound like Medishield Life is not intended to look after the well being of your life? More like another scam to perpetuate the life long lock up of our retirement savings?
The only good news about the shady package is the reduction of the co-insurance component of the medical bill. Then again, they never did promise not to hike the rates for various hospital charges and procedures. Gotcha again.
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//Who ordered the removal of the $300,000 lifetime claim limit, increase of yearly claim limit from current $70,000 to $100,000, or increased daily claim limits for normal hospital wards?//
ReplyDeleteIndranee Rajah has just written on her Facebook:
"The MediShield Life recommendations are the combined efforts of Our Singapore Conversation (OSC) participants, civil servants who manned the OSC secretariat and 'those who worked tirelessly on the policy recommendations - the PAP ministers, in particular the Ministers for Health and Finance and Mr Bobby Chin and his Committee.' "
Notice the lack of input from the ordinary citizen.
It is exactly like how our local mobile or cablevision companies advertised their mobile or cablevision packages reflecting the monthly subscriptions but less the charges for the 3 months goodies that come with it. After the 3 months is gone, they will bill customers who realised that they can't opt out any more after enjoying the 3 month freebies.
ReplyDeleteJust like the HDB subsidy or grants, operating on the same modus operanti as our local Departmental Stores offering generous storewide discounts when in reality the prices are already marked up to reflect their minimum operating profit. Which explains why our MND Minister has refused until this very day to tell us the actual construction cost of a typical HDB flat despite widespread appeal for them to be more honest upfront.
Are they not repeating again the same modus operandi now to our national health insurance just like the CPF Life Annuity Scheme ?
Catherine Lim talked about Singapore in "crisis of trust". I think she misses the point completely: how can you trust a snakeoil salesman? Are there any honest ones to start with? Does any one believe foo or khor or horse or cows when they pay themsleves royally a million here (before bonus) and then claim to be "left of centre" and have the welfare of the people at heart?
ReplyDeleteThey are exactly how my grandfather once told me about snake-oil salesman when I first started work. You can tell a snakeoil salesman out when he receives a complaint from his customer the oil he bought last time caused him to puke. "Ar, I have a new and better version, bound to cure your puking, this new improved version cost only 20% more, and solve all the old problems!". In small print: Side effect includes impotency, cancer, HIV and others to be disclosed later. get them to pay more, and disguise it as "improvement"! Worst, the WP actually agree with them! So yes, my plan B is already in place! I am not waiting for 2016, whoever wins, it will be more of the same, because the civil masters will still demand more salary hikes for themselves, to be funded by sheeple.
When our so called leaders said "Insurance Premiums Are Affordable", i felt this is a very misleading statement. Only naive citizens will take their advice.
ReplyDeleteWhen the medical insurance coverage has been extended, say, to cover members for life, any increase in "cost'' will not come from the government, but the members themselves.
It is noted that the increase in premium is more than what members could benefit.
I suppose all our leaders have mastered their 'Tai Chi" very well. To quote the words of one MP: 'dont know what to say'.
What do you think?
As tattler said in the blog, they copy from the newton circle hawker or geylang durian seller's tactic. When you ask "how much?", they always reply "not expensive, very cheap". Its not expensive for them, because every extra dollar they collect half goes to fund their extra bonuses and salary hikes, the rest goes to the gamblers at THL and GIC to fatten someone else's pockets. You are the sheeple, to be fleeced, for their annual coming "festive" season:) every chance you complain, they give you new and better "solution", you must be reasonable, you must pay for "improvements"! This will go on until you stop complaining, because you are too tired to pay more, then you say, enuf, everything under PAP is perfect! You dare complain some more?
DeleteAt anon 4.25pm. You are right. when we complain the buses, mrt are so crowded, they increase the bus fleet, mrt frequency and force us to pay for the fare increase. When we complain about hospital bills too expensive, they came out with medishield life, and force us to pay higher premiums. But the root of the crowdedness is the gov't population policy that increase the population at an amazing speed in this little red dot.
DeleteThe increase in population boosts the GDP, and creates wealth for the government. But we the people end up with all the social costs. When the government implements Medishield for all, we pay for most of the premiums. This means that the "help" funds eg the Medifund, becomes redundant, which results in huge savings for the government. So like many of their schemes, the end result is we are the ones who pay and pay. Yah, it's all tai-chi.
DeleteSingapore may be land starved but it is an enormous state run farm good at herding milking cows and breeding golden egg laying fowls.
ReplyDeleteI trust the young Singaporeans to run Singapore.
ReplyDeleteYoung Singaporeans who are not from PAP.
Young Singaporeans like Roy Ngerng.
Much as I dislike the old LKY now.
The young LKY and his old team did do some good for Singaporeans.
So likewise, i think Roy Ngerng and other young Singaporeans like him deserve a chance to clean up PAP's mess.
If we are willing to trust our health to all the 3rd world doctors that PAP has introduced into our public hospitals & polyclinics.
Shouldn't we also trust our very own young Singaporeans in the same manner?
Before you get to excited think, the old Singaporese of today were young Singaporese once upon a time. You too will be an old Singaporese one day, no one gets an exemption. Unfortunately for Singapore there are not too many giants whose shoulders we can stand on.
DeleteOh yes ! The elder Lee and his cronies were definitely of more solid make-up than the younger Lee and his current crop of yes men and women.
DeleteI trust the young Singaporeans more than the old Singaporeans.
DeleteAgree. Han Hui Hui & Roy are good examples.
I trust the old Singaporeans more than I trust the new aliens.
MedishieldLife is like a drug pusher to an addict. Sell you a starter kit at 80% discount to get you hooked and then reduce it progressively by 20% yearly and by the end of the 4th year, knowing you are completely hooked, now demand you pay FULL PRICE.
ReplyDeleteIt always gets my guards up when people try to make a hard sell. If a product is that good, it will sell itself. Something is fishy.
ReplyDeleteHard sell has turned Singapore into a Kitsch town. Just look at the monstrous looking merlion, spewing into the river day and night. Who in their right mind would want to come and see this fibreglass wannabe icon and other manufactured and state sponsored cultural products
DeleteHard sell is ok because you can always reject the offer and walk away. For Medisave Life and minimum CPF sum, we have no choice.
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely correct. This is how the system here usually operates. They ram through their policies first, and then, if there is resistance, try to sell or justify them later to placate the populace for political mileage. To us, a meaningless excercise, because they are already sold.
DeleteThe two giant casinos are emblems of crooked moral failure for a little island state that has always prided itself in the past by walking the straight and hard way:- good education, affordable homes and truly subsidized healthcare. How has the billion dollars of gambling revenues improved the life of the average Singaporean? Nowadays "good education, affordable homes and healthcare" is a cliche synonymous with the wealthy individuals. How did the government ever get so amnesic about the good old Singapore social contract?.
ReplyDelete