$278 million in MediSave top-ups for Pioneer, Merdeka Generation
The Pioneer and Merdeka Generation will receive $278 million in MediSave top-ups next month.
These top-ups can be used to pay the premiums for MediShield Life and other MediSave-approved insurance plans, as well as medical expenses such as hospitalisation, day procedures, and outpatient treatments.
In a joint statement released yesterday, the ministries of Finance and Health said seniors can expect to receive letters with details of the top-ups by the end of this month.
The Pioneer Generation - born in or before 1949 - will receive between $250 and $900 each.
The ministries added that seniors aged 82 and above this year who have serious pre-existing conditions will receive further top-ups of $50 to $200 a year from 2021 to 2025 to help them pay their higher MediShield Life premiums.
The top-ups for pioneers will amount to about $182 million this year.
AFFORDABLE
"With these enhancements, Pioneers aged 87 and above in 2021 will continue to see their MediShield Life premiums fully covered. Younger Pioneers will have about two-thirds of their MediShield Life premiums covered," said the ministries.
The increased annual MediSave top-ups for Pioneer Generation seniors from this year, announced by the Health Ministry last December, will help keep premiums affordable for Pioneers who have generally accumulated less MediSave sums than younger Singaporeans.
The Merdeka Generation - born between 1950 and 1959 - will continue to receive $200 in MediSave top-ups every year until 2023.
The top-ups will amount to about $96 million this year.
These top-ups will be on top of the annual GST Voucher - MediSave top-ups for eligible Singaporeans aged 65 and above.
Around 450,000 Pioneers and 500,000 Merdeka Generation seniors have benefited from MediSave top-ups since the launch of both packages in 2014 and 2019 respectively.
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