Using Seniors Mobility and Enabling Fund for hearing aids

NOTICE PAPER NO. 3061

NOTICE OF QUESTION FOR ORAL ANSWER

FOR THE SITTING OF PARLIAMENT ON OR AFTER 16 OCTOBER 2024

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament

Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong

MP for Hougang 

Question No. 6578

To ask the Minister for Health in view of studies linking uncorrected hearing loss with dementia, whether the Ministry will consider allowing seniors to use MediSave for the purchase of their hearing aids.

Answer

1     Seniors who require hearing aids can tap on the Seniors’ Mobility and Enabling Fund, which provides eligible Singaporeans with means-tested subsidies of up to 90%. Those with severe hearing loss requiring hearing implants such as bone conduction hearing or cochlear implants, can tap on subsidies, MediSave and MediShield Life. The Agency for Integrated Care can also provide additional support. While it is understandable that many Singaporeans wish to use more of their MediSave, we also need to ensure that Singaporeans have adequate MediSave balances to support their medical expenses for major health episodes, which tend to happen when they are in an advanced age.