Best Health Insurance Singapore 2024

When it comes to protection, healthcare plans are probably the most basic protection you should get equipped with. They don’t pay out a big sum, there are no sum assured amounts to replace income or expenses.

Rather, an Integrated Shield Plan (ISP) is a comprehensive health insurance plan that covers for inpatient & outpatient treatment costs as well as hospital stay. By treatment, the level of care, facility, doctor’s expertise all come into consideration. These are expensive and is definitely something to be of concern as we all know medical bills can be huge if not covered for and will cost all of your emergency funds and savings.

There is an Additional Withdrawal Limit (AWL) according to your age band to make use of. If the premium exceeds this AWL, cash payment is needed. 

MediShield Life is a basic healthcare program put together primarily for Singaporeans. Integrated Shield Plans (ISP) is an upgrade to allow you to get better treatment coverage and better facilities and ward class. 

Singaporeans and Permanent Residents (PR) can make use of their CPF’s Medisave account to upgrade and pay for the Integrated Shield Plan (ISP). 

Yes. Adequate coverage including ward class and the level of treatment is available similarly to Singaporeans as well. Full Cash is required as premiums instead of using CPF’s MediSave.

International Health Insurance plans provides for healthcare treatment as well as hospitalisation bills both in Singapore as well as overseas. They are especially extensive for those travelling overseas often, be it for local Singaporeans or permanent residents, although expats working in Singapore may find it really useful.

This is because integrated shield plans do not cover locals and expats the all-rounded comprehensive treatment coverage overseas, they only cover emergency inpatient treatment and is capped to a limit.

For the most part, an Integrated Shield plan (ISP) is comprehensive enough for most of us in Singapore. Some insurers’ ISPs cover for locals and foreigners while some cover for only locals. That being said, if you are an expat working in Singapore and traveling around the region often, and you would like a comprehensive healthcare protection plan that covers you even when you are no longer working in Singapore, this is for you.

For Singaporeans covered with ISP, having an International Health Insurance plan makes sure you are covered even if you seek treatment from other parts of the world. Perhaps you were recommended by a top surgeon or neurologist whom are based only in UK, or maybe the type of surgery that is required for your condition can only be performed in certain countries not in Singapore (Tokyo or UK for example), then an International Health Insurance plan can cover for your treatment. An ISP will only cover to a certain limit.

An International Health Insurance plan covers you with a much more comprehensive healthcare protection and includes 7 main healthcare features that ISPs usually do not have, they are:

• No Medical Underwriting
• Higher Treatment Limit – up to S$6 Million annually 
• Pre-existing Conditions Coverage
• Comprehensive Care includes: Dental & Optical care, Vaccinations, health screening and even Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)
• Maternity expenses and Newborns Pre & Post-Natal Complications coverage
• Global coverage – ranges from selected regions to more worldwide coverages 

• Pre- & Post- Treatments & Hospitalisation Expenses Coverage
• Cashless Payment Globally
• Outpatient General Practitioner Treatment Coverage

Aside from these differences in terms of healthcare features, another stark difference is that while the MediSave can be used to supplement payment for an ISP, it cannot be used for an International Health Insurance plan.

Surprisingly, the premiums for an International Health Insurance plan can be comparable to an ISP, providing an alternative coverage for people with pre-existing conditions which an ISP will exclude.