NON-MEDICAL COSTS BORNE BY FAMILIES RECEIVING HOME-BASED PALLIATIVE CARE

NOTICE PAPER NO. 837

NOTICE OF QUESTION FOR ORAL ANSWER

FOR THE SITTING OF PARLIAMENT ON OR AFTER 06 MAY 2026

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament

Mr Low Wu Yang Andre

Non-Constituency MP

Question No. 2221

To ask the Coordinating Minister for Social Policies and Minister for Health (a) what assessment has the Ministry made of the non-medical costs borne by families receiving home-based palliative care, including transport, caregiving expenses, adult diapers, and income loss from caregiving responsibilities; and (b) whether additional subsidies or financial support is being considered to address these residual out-of-pocket expenses beyond subsidised clinical care.

Answer

1.      As the Minister said in his recent speech at the 9^th Singapore Palliative Care Conference on 18 April 2026, MOH has taken steps to make Home Palliative Care even more affordable for end-of-life patients since 2024. We enhanced means-tested subsidies and removed the lifetime MediSave withdrawal limits for patients using their own MediSave. Palliative care patients who need to defray other costs, such as non-medical costs, can tap on the Reduced Life Expectancy scheme to withdraw their Central Provident Fund savings.