CareShield Life 2025 Review FAQs

CareShield Life works alongside other Government subsidies and grants to support long-term care costs. With rising long-term care costs, the enhancements in the payout growth rate are necessary to ensure that CareShield Life continues to meaningfully support the varied care needs of those with severe disability.

Existing CareShield Life claimants will not be affected by the enhanced CareShield Life benefits and increased premiums, and will continue to receive their existing CareShield Life payouts for the duration of severe disability.

Expanding CareShield Life coverage to those with milder forms of disability would require premiums to at least double, due to the longer claim duration and higher claim incidences for these individuals. As this would have come at the expense of premium affordability for more policyholders, the CareShield Life Council has recommended not to vary the scheme’s scope of coverage.  

Importantly, the CareShield Life Council notes that those with mild or moderate disability can continue to access Government subsidies and grants that have been designed with them in mind. These include long-term care subsidies and grants such as Home Caregiving Grant that the Government will enhance progressively from 2026.

Those who wish for additional insurance coverage can also consider Supplements offered by private insurers.

With the CareShield Life premium support measures, annual CareShield Life premium increases from 2026 to 2030 will be moderated to about $38 on average, and no more than $75.

CareShield Life premiums will continue to be fully payable via MediSave, which will minimise out-of-pocket payments for policyholders.

Lower- and middle-income policyholders will have smaller CareShield Life premium increases, as they will receive means-tested premium subsidies.

Individuals may check their personalised premiums through the CareShield Life premium checker from November 2025 onwards.

Unlike CareShield Life premium subsidies, which are means-tested and targeted at the lower- and middle-income policyholders, all policyholders who see an increase in their gross premiums will benefit from the transitional support to help manage the premium increases from the CareShield Life 2025 Review.

The Government provides means-tested premium subsidies targeted at the lower- and middle-income individuals.

Policyholders’ loved ones may also help with premium payment for policyholders through their MediSave or by topping up to the MediSave accounts of their loved ones.

For those who are unable to pay for their CareShield Life premiums even after premium subsidies and family support, the Government will provide Additional Premium Support, so that no one loses CareShield Life coverage due to an inability to pay their premiums.

CareShield Life Supplements are offered by private insurers, and CareShield Life Supplement premiums are independent of CareShield Life.

Most Supplement benefits also stack independently on top of CareShield Life benefits, and would not be affected. 

Supplement policyholders may wish to contact their insurers to enquire about any potential changes or impact to their Supplement policies.

Maintaining the enhancement as a standard feature for all policyholders helps keep the scheme fair and sustainable, and premiums affordable. This helps to:

1. Reduce adverse selection risk, where those who are more likely to claim are more likely to opt into the scheme.

2. Keep administrative processes simple and efficient.

Hence, the CareShield Life Council has recommended to apply the enhancements to all policyholders, striking a fair balance between stronger protection and premium affordability for all.

When CareShield Life was launched, older Singaporeans with less severe disability were allowed to join as a time-limited concession, so that more seniors could enrol in and benefit from CareShield Life.

However, this also meant that premiums for all older Singaporeans had to be priced higher, to account for the possibility that those with milder forms of disability were more likely to join the scheme.

This concession period lasted 4 years, over twice as long as what MOH had announced when the concession was rolled out. In this time, application rates have also decreased over time.

Thus, the CareShield Life Council views that this is an appropriate juncture to reinstate the underwriting criteria, which will moderate the extent of premium increases for all older policyholders, keeping the scheme fair and sustainable.

After 1 January 2026, individuals born in 1979 or earlier can still enrol into CareShield Life if they do not have any pre-existing disabilities.

All Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents born in 1980 or later will continue to be automatically enrolled when they turn age 30.