Subsidies for hearing aids available through seniors’ mobility fund

MOH's reply

TODAY, 8 May 2014

We thank Mr Philip Lim (“Expand Pioneer Package to subsidise hearing aids, too”, 1 May) for his suggestion to allow the use of Medisave for hearing aids.

We agree with Mr Lim that with an ageing population, we need to better support our seniors to be independent and safe in the community. It is with this in mind that we enhanced the Seniors’ Mobility and Enabling Fund (SMF) on 1 Jul 2013 to provide subsidies to eligible seniors for a wider range of assistive devices, including hearing aids. As of 30 Apr 2014, the SMF has provided subsidies for 890 hearing aids.

Those who wish to find out more about SMF can approach the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) or refer to the Singapore Silver Pages website for more information (www.silverpages.sg/SMF).

As for the use of Medisave for hearing aids, we seek Mr Lim’s understanding that Medisave is designed primarily to help cover members’ hospitalisation bills. In order to ensure that there is sufficient money in each Singaporean’s Medisave account for hospitalisation needs, there are safeguards to limit the withdrawals.

Nonetheless, MOH will continue to review our Medisave policies regularly and update them whenever necessary, as part of our mission to make quality healthcare affordable and accessible to all Singaporeans.

Dennis Yim

Deputy Director

Corporate Communications

Ministry of Health

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TODAY, 1 May 2014

Expand Pioneer Package to subsidise hearing aids, too

The Pioneer Generation Package is designed to help subsidise healthcare for senior citizens.

There is, however, one area that has long been overlooked: Hearing problems. Although deafness may appear insignificant compared with other types of sickness, it plays a vital role where road safety is concerned.

An elderly person crossing the road faces a greater risk if he cannot hear the honking of an approaching vehicle from a distance, especially with the congested roads nowadays.

I would not be surprised if there are elderly pedestrians who get knocked down due to a hearing problem.

Currently, Medisave can be used for certain eye and dental treatments related to old age.

Its use should also be allowed for hearing aids, which are costly for our seniors, many of whom would suffer from a certain degree of deafness as they age.

Philip Lim (Mr)