Medishield Life will face big challenges

 expect that Medishield Life will encounter some of the following problems:

1. It aims to cover everyone for a lifetime, and to include pre-existing illnesses. Judging from the experience of Medicare in America, it could become very costly. 

2. The key challenge is to manage the expectation of health care for the aged - a challenge that America, with their decades of experience, was not able to solve. Singapore will face the same challenges.

3. Asking everyone to pay for the cost of Medishield Life through insurance premiums will not be easy. The cost will be unaffordable.

4. Making it compulsory to solve Medishield Life will not work. Many people will not heave the money to pay the premium. Those who have, will complain about the cost.

5. We need an "out of the box" solution to manage the expectation of health care for the elderly - especially when the cost is paid by insurance, or by the government (like in America). I am not aware of any successful system to manage it well. But, it can be found, by an innovative approach.

Are you able to think "out of the box" ?

Are you prepared to try something idfferent, and to take risk? Do you look heyond the obvious answer? Try this quiz. 

Theer is no "right" or "wrong" answer to these questions. I have selected what I think are the answers that are innovative and out of the box. Check your score on this scale. And you will see an explanation.

http://c-onyx.com/page/1351

Get a project leader to implement change

William Lim said:
People are unwilling to make changes, including myself. But some policies are outdated and need modification, the leaders who need to endorse the changes for the better of Singaporean. How can this mindset to be changed? Changing of Government is no use, the question is how to change their mindset?

REPLY
They are scared of failure. They are scared that failure meant loss of job.
We need a system to allow them to try and learn. But, even if you tell them, they will not take the risk, because their mindset is - I don't trust what you say.
So, they will NEVER CHANGE.
The only way is to appoint another person to manage a specific change project. Put this person in charge. Let the person handle the project. If the project fails, the person will disappear from the scene. Anyway, this person was not part of the organization in the first place.
This is the only way to make change.

Students want better grade

Most graduates want to get top grades, so they stand a better chance to be employed by the banks and large companies. 

But, only 10% will be able to get top grades. Those who failed to get the top grades pressure the professor or the school to give them a better grade. They even accuse the professor of being unfair in the grading. 

This attitude is harmful. There can only be 10% who can get top grades, and the professor is trying his or her best to be as fair as possible to all students. 

What is the solution?

Insurance company repudiate liability

Under an agreement among the insurance companies, the insurer can repudiate liability under a motor insurance policy if its policyholder does not report an accident. This allows the insurer to avoid paying the third party claim, even though its insured vehicle cause the accident, and require the third party to take a legal case against the driver, which is time consuming, costly and risky. The third party had no choice but to claim against its own policy and risk losing the no claim bonus. This is not satisfactory.

A ransom price on top of market rentals

Some people argue that it is best to leave matters to the free market. This is the PAP approach that has been prevailing for the past 30 years, ever since LHL was active in the Government.
While the free market has its merits, it also has it serious flaws. It does not recognize the rights of the tenant. On renewal, the landlord can impose a ransom on the renewal terms. The tenant had already invested in the renovation of the shop or stall and had spent time to build a business. The tenant had to pay a price that is higher than the true market.
Sometimes, another tenant may offer a higher rental rate, with the purpose of "killing off a competitor".
This situation leads to rental being higher than the true market, and over time, leads to escalation. When a tenant moves to a new location, there is additional cost in rebuilding the business. This is what I called "wastefulness".
Wastefulness has been a part of the Singapore system for several decades. It has lead to high cost of doing business and high cost of living. We are now no longer competitive globally.
We are misled by the statistics of multinational companies setting up operation in Singapore. In many cases, there are given tax incentive, land at special rates and government grants. These are not publicized. They show good figures, but hide the fact that our costs have gone out of hand.
If we do not recognize the real problems in Singapore, and continue to delude ourselves, things will continue to get worse.

Will we face the same problems as the Obamacare Exchange?

The insurance exchange that was launched on 1 October under the Affordable Care Act in America encountered technical problems and was not able to cope with the heavy traffic of 8 million visitors. The cost of the system ballooned three times from $100 to $300 million in US dollars.

While the problem seemed to be quite irrelevant to us, we should not be complacent. We will be introducing two similar initiatives in Singapore over the next 12 months.

We will have to register large number of applicants under the proposed Medishield Life scheme and also provide a website for employers to post their job vacancies before they are allowed to apply for a work pass for foreigners.

These registrations are likely to face issues similar to those that bogged down the insurance exchange in America. 

We also have to be careful about adopting the same approach, i.e. relying on vendors and consultants who face a conflict of interest and are likely to recommend costly solutions that have a tendency to overrun in budget.

Let us be aware now of the issues and not repeat the problems that are now experienced in America. 

Delay in implementing national IT projects

here were much publicity a few years ago about the OneInbox project and the National Authentication Framework.

OneInbox was intended to allow the public to receive their mails from all government agencies at a common inbox, instead of logging in to separate websites to retrieve the replies from these agencies.

The National Authentication Framework was intended to allow each person to hold a single token which can be used as an additional verification of the person for  financial and other sensitive transaction.

I am quite tired of logging in to the websites of separate government agencies to retrieve my mails and being asked to change my passwords frequently and to create strong passwords which differ from one website to another.

I also do not like the bulky security tokens that are being issued separately by different banks and securities firms.

Pay a fee to the financial adviser

The information given in the EIP website are FREE for members of the website. 
If you still need advice on any of the product or alternative products, contact a financial adviser and pay a modest consulting fee. It is worth spending this money. The adviser can guide you on what is a better choice and can save you tens of thousand dollars. Pay them a fee, as they have to make a living. Otherwise, they will spend their time to sell you products that can earn them a few thousand dollars, at your expense. Do you want that to happen?

www.c-onyx.com/eip

Naming of roads

In the old days, we have a simpler way to name our roads, e.g. in Ang Mo Kio and Toa Payoh. The major roads are called Avenue or Lorong and the smaller roads are called Street. They are numbered.

Later, for Sengkang and Punggol, somebody decided to give different names to the roads. This naming structure is confusing to people who visit the estate from outside. I suspect that the residents will also find it confusing.

To make matters worse, the roads are described as avenue, road, street, lane, way without regard to size. Usually, one expects the roads to be name according to size - starting from avenue, road, street, lane.

For example, Sin Ming Lane is of the same size as Sin Ming Avenue. This is only possible using Singapore logic!

I don't know why some smart fellow was allowed to change the naming structure to be so confusing, and why they were allowed to do so.

My grand children love the Magic Box

Whenever my grand daughters visit me, the first thing they ask is to look into the Magic Box. It will stay in their childhood memory. What is the Magic Box? Every parent or grandparent should have one. http://c-onyx.com/page/26

Meet the People session

Desumondo Deseumondeu asked:
Mr Tan,
Some thing happen to me quite recently and i just wanted to share my views.

I approached 3 different PAP MPs during their Meet The People sessions on different days regarding the same matter and asked exactly the same question.
However NONE of them actually got back to me with an answer, and worse yet send me a letter which is not the answer but a totally different opinion which does not in anyway relate to the question i asked them !!

When the govt are not able to help us citizens, what other channels are we able to turn to for assistance and squeeze an answer out of them ??

REPLY
The MPs are also in a jam. They receive all kinds of people and problems in their Meet the People session. There is also difficulty in communicating with some residents - due to language or lack of education. (I am not referring to you).

It is quite easy for them to get mixed up, or to get confused over the issue.

If you have a problem, it will be helpful if you can write it down clearly (or get some help to write it down). It will be easier for your MP to understand the issue and to help find an answer (if at all possible).

Be fair to the MPs. Do not approach three of them over the same issue.

Frankly, I think the "Meet the People" session is out-of-date, but the PAP dare not abandon it.

A more open and transparent approach

Dear Mr. Tan,
You said that our government leaders are arrogant and don't want to listen to the views of concerned citizens. I find your views to make a lot of sense, but they seem to be ignoring them. So, I agree that they are not only arrogant but out of touch with what is happening on the ground. 

I believe that it is not difficult to be a leader. There are many wise people around, and if the leader is willing to listen to them, they should be able to come out with better policies.

My point is, if there is a change of government in 2016, Singaporeans do not need to be worried. If another party comes into power, and the leaders know that they are not the elites, they will be able to listen to more wise people and get better policies. Singapore will be governed better.

Do you agree?

REPLY
Generally, I agree that the government can come out with better policies if they are more willing to listen to people who have wider and more diverse experience and knowledge.

But, we still need leaders to make the final judgment - and that is not easy. If the leaders are incapable, they may make a bad judgment (even after getting the inputs of the advisers). And different advisers may have different opinion.

But, I must say that the current system - where decisions are made from the ivory tower, is probably among the worst. There is now suspicion that these decisions are made to benefit certain quarters, which makes things more difficult.

It is better to have a more open and transparent way to make important policy decisions affecting the people at large. .

My attitude towards government policies

Someone observed that I don't like the policies of the Government. It is true that I don't like many of the social and economic polices, especially those that lead to high income gap, high cost of housing, high cost of living, wastefulness and unfairness. 

But, I know that the Government leaders are doing their best to solve these issues. I do not like their approach, which is not addressing the roots of the problems, but it is a matter of opinion. They think that their policies are right, and they are ultimately responsible for the outcome.

By adopting their aloof approach, they are cutting themselves from alternative views of concerned citizens - many of whom have practical experiences. I hope that they will be truly willing to listen to alternative approaches, rather than continue their "arrogant" attitude.

Unfair treatment of Singaporeans

Mr. Tan,
I was at a gala dinner last night where the guest of honor was a minister. At my table were a few foreigners. One of them, who has lived a few years in Singapore said, "Singapore is a wonderful place. Most of the locals don't understand why." He said it in a mocking way. What does he mean?

REPLY
I suspect that he must be very rich and probably make most of his income overseas. When he live in Singapore, he does not have to pay any tax on his overseas income. They also save on the big income tax that they have to pay in their home country. That is why Singapore is a wonderful place for people like him.

The locals earn their salaries in Singapore and have to pay tax and the high cost of living. The males even have to serve National Service and reservist training at regular intervals.

It is quite unfair for the Singapore government to give so favorable living conditions to rich foreigners and do not require them to pay any tax on their income.

It is quite bad for him to mock the locals who are already suffering under an unfair system .This will lead to unrest one day.

How to eradicate poverty in Singapore

Singapore is an affluent country. Based on GDP per capita, she is one of the richest countries in the world.

Hence logically, one would expect all her citizens to live comfortably, well above the poverty line (wherever that might be since it has never been officially defined). Yet ironically, there is a small group of Singaporeans who are living in “poverty”. With the country’s vast wealth, both in terms of revenue and savings, it should not be a financial issue to bring this group out of poverty. Further, the government has implemented the “minimum sum” and “CPF Life” schemes which are designed to ensure her citizens would have sufficient savings to spend on necessities during retirement. So it is not as though the government is not aware of the amount required for sustainable living at the minimum level for life. So, if it is not a financial problem to bring people out of poverty, then what could be the problem?

Ideology. In Singapore, welfarism is seen as a “dirty” word. Instead of encouraging the rich to help the poor, she encourages everyone to make their own living. This ideology is fine when everyone is able and there are sufficient jobs. But when some are less able and the job market is challenging, it can lead to a state of “us and them” and "everyone for himself (or herself)". With such an ideology, Singapore indeed has one of largest income gap in the world. In the present economic structure, the rich also tend to get richer while the poor get poorer. So, is there an ideology that is more friendly to the poor so that they can live a dignified life?
We are all one.  The power of this ideology leads us to feel for others - "we are not separate" and “your pain is my pain”.  To implement this ideology in the practical world, we may have an inverse relationship between the salary of senior political and administrative leaders and the number of people living in poverty. With such an arrangement, it is then to the interest of the leaders to ensure that poverty is erased. Yes, with the “right”  ideology and practical approach, poverty can literally disappear from the islands of Singapore overnight!

Dr. Tommy Wong
Author of book series "Wisdom on How to Live Life"

The book series can be ordered here.

Negative impact of National Service on our male citizens

For 25 years, I have held the view that National Service has a heavy burden on the future of your young men. More people are now sharing the same view. Read this article and the comments:
http://therealsingapore.com/content/gilbert-goh-why-locals-girls-do-not-want-our-singaporean-men

Excessive concern about privacy and security

Our banks and security firms adopts a ridiculous approach towards internet security. I suspect that the measures are directed by MAS.

I applied to receive e-statements of contract notes. They are sent to me with password protection. I do not know the password that were used. I could not open the statements for many months.

This morning, I went to SGX website, login to my CDP account, and searched all over the place to set my own password. I could not find it.

Maybe, the passwords are set by my securities firm. Anyway, it is confusing and troublesome. I never asked for this security. I do not consider it as important anyway.

The statements are received by e-mail, which require me to access with a password anyway.

I also have trouble with the quarterly change of passwords that is mandated in my login trading account, and the funny combinations of password.

I hope that MAS will stop directing the banks and security firms to implement impractical security arrangements. If they have to, they should adopt sensible (and not ridiculous) arrangements.

Evaluation of Insurance Products

I have created this website to evaluate the life insurance products that are marketed in Singapore. 
I will be putting up the benefit illustration for these products and give my evaluation of the product.
They will be rated as "Recommended", "Neutral" or "Avoid".

I will be building up the products over the next few weeks. 

If you have a specific product, you can search for it under the "Latest" tag (which also serves as a Search tag).
If you wish to find a better way to invest your savings, you can contact one of the financial advisers listed in the website. Be ready to pay a modest consulting fee, so that they can make a living by advising you on the most suitable products.

The website is called "Evaluation of Insurance Products" and can be accessed at http://c-onyx.com/eip

Wasteful practice in renewal tenancy of stalls in food court

Six months ago, the operator of the food court in Midview City told me that he is not continuing the lease, as the rental is going up by a large percentage. A few of the stalls could not survive and had moved out.
I just learned that the successful stalls are also moving out this week. They were uncertain about the terms of the renewal of their stalls and had signed up at other places to continue their business.

The management office had decided to operate the food court directly (most probably because they could not get another operator) and had offered to renew the tenancy for the existing stalls at the last minute (but they had already signed up elsewhere).

It is very wasteful for the existing stalls (which were doing well here) to move out and set up business elsewhere, and for the management office to look for new stalls to come in.
This is a consequence of the practice that is quite common in Singapore, where there is uncertainty of tenure and the prospect that rentals will continue to be pushed up, beyond an affordable limit. And in the process, there is so much wastage.

Singapore has many wasteful practices!