Planning Ahead for the Future Through Lasting Power of Attorney, Estate Planning and Advanced Medical Directive

NOTICE PAPER NO. 1458
NOTICE OF QUESTION FOR WRITTEN ANSWER
FOR THE SITTING OF PARLIAMENT ON 20 OCTOBER 2022

Name and Constituency of Member of ParliamentMr Zhulkarnain Abdul RahimMP for Chua Chu Kang GRC

Question No. 2250

To ask the Minister for Social and Family Development in view of the increasing number of ageing citizens without family members who are able or willing to take care of them in their senior years, what are the Ministry’s plans to work with agencies from other Ministries to encourage more Singaporeans to plan comprehensively, for example, through lasting power of attorney, estate planning and Advanced Medical Directive.

Answer

It is important to plan ahead to ensure our affairs are taken care of when we are unable to do so ourselves. To do this, we can make our Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA), Advance Care Plan (ACP), Advance Medical Directive and wills early. While next-of-kin are often involved in making these decisions, seniors who do not have suitable next-of-kin can get help from professionals or other facilitators. More information is available on the My Legacy portal.

The My Legacy portal is a Whole-of-Government initiative that was launched in 2020 to help Singaporeans plan ahead. It offers comprehensive information and services on legacy-related issues such as life planning, end-of-life care, post-death matters and estate settlement. To encourage the uptake of LPA and ACP, there is an LPA-ACP bundled tool which enables individuals to draft both instruments in one sitting. Individuals can retrieve and share these important documents through the My Legacy Vault for easier future reference.

To increase awareness, workshops promoting life planning via My Legacy are conducted at Active Ageing Centres. MOH and MSF have also been conducting outreach at community touchpoints such as public libraries, faith-based organisations, and community centres.