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Thu. 07 Dec 2017 – 5:50
Singapore
SINGAPORE may have to pay a higher health care bill for its aging population.
Public spending on health is expected to "grow quite steeply" over the next three to five years, said Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat. It expects an increase of at least 3 billion Singaporean dollars by 2020 from current levels.
To put this into perspective, the total budget of the Ministry of Health in 2010 was S $ 4 billion. In this year's budget, Mr. Heng allocated $ 10 billion. An additional leap of $ 3 billion by 2020 would mean that in ten years the budget will reach more than three times its 2010 level.
After a visit to Changi General Hospital (CGH) and St. Andrew's Community Hospital (SACH) on Wednesday, Heng said: "As medical technology improves, as our population ages, demand will increase and the need to grow it. " He predicted an annual MS budget of at least $ 13 billion from 2020.
Professor Euston Quah, director of economics at Nanyang Technological University, said rising health costs would drive up taxes. "This is one of the main reasons because health care is becoming more and more subsidized for a larger number of eligible people.
"Income tax and corporation tax, which are direct taxes, are low in Singapore compared to other countries, but indirect taxes (GST and other non-profit taxes) compensate for it. ".
In his February budget speech, Heng said part of a larger health care bill would be covered by new taxes or by the government raising current taxes.
Dr. Chia Shi-Lu, Chair of the Government's Parliamentary Committee for Health, said, "Health care spending will be a growing share of net government spending over the next decade.
"When taxes go up, it's good to know that a significant portion of our taxes goes to health care, which is a public good and a necessity."
Mr Heng said the increase of 3 billion Singaporean dollars was "only an initial estimate" and would depend on "our ability to manage over the next few years".
He added, "It's something that Health Minister Gan Kim Yong and I continue to discuss to better prepare our forecasts and prepare our resources to meet this need."
At CGH and SACH, he saw how technology improves care,
He was shown the bed carrier, which reduces the number of people needed to move a bed with a patient on, from two people to one.
He saw how a new technology can evaluate injuries in seconds, instead of the 30 minutes that a nurse normally takes.
He also saw how technology is used to improve patient rehabilitation, how their vital signs such as blood pressure and heart rate are automatically entered into the system.
"What I see is very encouraging, it's the way the hospital itself takes action, first to improve its operations, and then to improve the skills of its employees, and that's in a very holistic way, "he said after spending more than a few hours there.
Mr. Heng admired the attitude of caregivers: "How can I be more innovative? How can I improve the results?"
He said: "This spirit of not being satisfied with what we have today, but to think about what we can do better tomorrow, and to have the will to try, is essential."
For more stories on the 2018 budget, click here.
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