t is a good idea to extend Medishield to a lifetime, to cover pre-existing illness and to offer it to those who are not covered now.
I have made this suggestion a few times over the past years. It takes the Government a long, long time, to understand it and to implement it. And, as usual ..... no acknowledgement of the contribution of the public.
And if there is worry that the cost will shoot out of the roof, it is exaggerated. All the treatment will be in subsidized wards in public hospital, where there is a cost cap. The public wards do not carry out expensive, experimental treatment - so the cost will be kept under control.
For elderly people above 90, most serious illnesses cannot be treated, so there is nothing that needs to be done in public wards. In fact, by attempting to treat, the patient may die faster.
The premium increase for young people should be quite modest, so there is no need to worry about it. For older people, a large part of the increase in cost is likely to be covered by the Government. Wait and see.
I have made this suggestion a few times over the past years. It takes the Government a long, long time, to understand it and to implement it. And, as usual ..... no acknowledgement of the contribution of the public.
And if there is worry that the cost will shoot out of the roof, it is exaggerated. All the treatment will be in subsidized wards in public hospital, where there is a cost cap. The public wards do not carry out expensive, experimental treatment - so the cost will be kept under control.
For elderly people above 90, most serious illnesses cannot be treated, so there is nothing that needs to be done in public wards. In fact, by attempting to treat, the patient may die faster.
The premium increase for young people should be quite modest, so there is no need to worry about it. For older people, a large part of the increase in cost is likely to be covered by the Government. Wait and see.
6 comments:
Here are the past letters that I had written to the newspapers about extending Medishield. Some were published in the papers, and some were not.
http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=11702093#allposts
Many have an impression in our current government of their bad habit of copying citizens' brilliant ideas and good suggestions. They rubber-stamp in approval. When successfully implementing the so-called new policies, they would claim credits fast without acknowledging your contributions unless you are in their camp. A typical 'Kiasu' culture that is originated from PAP.
Mr Tan, you have always given your honest, frank suggestions so perhaps it is a small consolations that at long last they were recognised. Of course, I can understand your frustration that it took so long and not a whimper of who did give Constructive Suggestions or Criticism.
I totally agree with you Mr Tan. It is normal that they do not ack public feeback. For this case credit goes to the GPC. In the paat a lot of suggestions being made like CHAS, using private hospitals to take care of Govt hospital beds shortages etc etc, well it is normal that they will KIV for few months or years and subsequently implement the policies to their credit. Hope this mindset will change moving forward.
In politics as in other fields, it is common for someone to behave like “the cock taking credit for the sunrise.” The fact is that many of the blue sky projects announced so far were the creations of countless backroom people whose names we will never know. On the other hand should a project fail, there is no one at the top to take responsibility, but always some one lower down the ranks.
It's gratifying to see our Govt with their self appointed "only we know best" attitude, copying ideas from citizens to improve Governance.
The usual norms prevail, those who should have recognition most get passed over by those lesser beings who craftily toe the official line.
But TKL is more balanced, knowing when to toe and not to toe.
Inwardly, we dun expect PM Lee to acknowledge good contributions from citizens, claiming credit yes, saying thank you, well, no, unless you are part of the PAP machinery.
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