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Ministry of Health
Press Releases

MediShield covers autistic children for non-autism related treatments

23 December 2010

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23 Dec 2010, The Straits Times

Question

Name of the Person: Dr Tay Guan Tong

Autistic children need insurance cover

I strongly agree with the sentiments expressed by Ms Lorna Tan last Friday ("Extend insurance cover to pre-existing illnesses").

My six-year-old son is autistic. I applied for NTUC Income's Enhanced IncomeShield plan for him, but was rejected because of his autism – a developmental condition that he did not have any control over.

When I appealed to the insurer, I was told that it is standard industry practice to exclude autism from coverage, and that my only recourse was to wait till my son turns 18 before he can be assessed to see if he is suitable for coverage.

In the interim, the insurer was not prepared to consider insuring him partially – in other words, excluding claims arising from his autistic condition – even if I was willing to pay higher premiums.

The greatest concern of parents with autistic children pertains to their future protection and well-being, especially when the parents are no longer around. Ensuring that their children are covered by a good medical insurance plan goes a long way towards putting their minds at ease.

The insurance industry should work towards including this silent and vulnerable group of individuals in their coverage plans.

Reply

Name of the Person: Julie Sim (Ms)

Deputy Director, Corporate Communications

Ministry of Health

Dr Tay Guan Tong was rightly concerned that autistic children could not get health insurance (“Autistic children need insurance cover”, ST, Dec 13).  He felt that insurance should at least cover for non-autism related illnesses.

MediShield does cover autistic children for all non-autism related illnesses.  This ensures that medical treatment at Class B2/C level for conditions unrelated to autism will be available to all autistic children if they subscribe to MediShield.

Private insurers which cover treatment in private hospitals have their own underwriting policies with regards to admission of autistic children.  NTUC Income’s reply of Dec 17, “Why it’s unfair to cover pre-existing illnesses”, provided one perspective.