Healthcare costs is now a greater threat to Singapore existence than foreign enemies. "Meanwhile, the Government's overall national healthcare spending has almost doubled since 2010, to reach S$21 billion in 2016." Healthcare government budget is in excess of S$21 billion. SAF budget is only about S$14.76 billion p.a. (FY201. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore_Armed_Forces Reference: https://www.straitstimes.com/singap...s-to-change-definitions-of-critical-illnesses Spoiler Life insurers to change definitions of critical illnesses The Life Insurance Association Singapore said all critical illnesses products based on definitions used from 2014, when the last update was done, may no longer be sold in Singapore from Aug 26 next year. The Life Insurance Association Singapore said all critical illnesses products based on definitions used from 2014, when the last update was done, may no longer be sold in Singapore from Aug 26 next year.PHOTO: ST FILE PUBLISHED: AUG 29, 2019, 2:20 PM SGT Felicia Choo SINGAPORE - People buying life insurance polices from Aug 26 next year will notice changes to the definitions of critical illnesses, which may impact how policy holders are covered by the insurers. For instance, "Deafness (Loss of Hearing)" has been amended to "Deafness (Irreversible Loss of Hearing)", with the term "irreversible" defined to recognise the possibility of future medical treatments that can restore hearing to some level as medical advances are made. Making the announcement on Thursday (Aug 29), the Life Insurance Association Singapore (LIA Singapore) said claims assessment and benefits will follow the definitions, and the terms and conditions stated in their existing policy contracts. However, it added that policyholders with existing critical illness policies are not impacted by the new definitions. LIA Singapore said all critical illness products based on definitions used from 2014, when the last update was done, may no longer be sold in Singapore from Aug 26 next year. "This round of review addresses ambiguities that have arisen due to medical advancements and health trends in the past five years," said Mr Khor Hock Seng, president of LIA Singapore. "Especially with the rapidly ageing population and rising incidences of chronic illnesses here, regular reviews of the critical illnesses definitions will ensure that critical illnesses products stay relevant with changing times, and that the intended scope of coverage is clear to consumers," he added. For example, with the critical illness "Heart Attack of Specified Severity", the reference to "Death of heart muscle due to obstruction of blood flow" has been revised to "Death of heart muscle due to ischaemia", to make it clear that both Type 1 Myocardial Infarction and Type 2 Myocardial Infarction are covered. All member companies of LIA Singapore and the General Insurance Association of Singapore will adopt the set of revised definitions. LIA Singapore said the standardisation of critical illness definitions provides greater transparency for customers to easily assess and compare the different plans available. Policyholders also have greater assurance in claims results with a reduced incidence of one insurer paying a claim and another rejecting it due to differences in definition applied for severe stage of the 37 common critical illnesses. Standardisation of critical illness definitions was first introduced by LIA Singapore in 2003, which said the industry remains committed to reviewing LIA's common definitions once every three years. In the last update in 2014, some of the 37 severe stage critical illness definitions were revised; and the maximum limit of 30 medical conditions per critical illnesses plan was abolished to allow for more medical conditions to be covered. LIA Singapore said research findings have shown that over 90 per cent of all severe stage claims received by life insurers are for five critical illnesses: major cancer, heart attack of specified severity, stroke with permanent neurological deficit, coronary artery bypass surgery, and end-stage kidney failure. There are nearly 548,000 people aged 65 or above, and the number will more than triple by 2030. The incidence of chronic diseases among both the young and old is also increasing. Meanwhile, the Government's overall national healthcare spending has almost doubled since 2010, to reach $21 billion in 2016.
FYI: My other thread shows that PAP government is source of the problem. They already know that many elderly are admitted to hospital because of poor diet, malnutrition etc but still encourage NTUC to overprice food and throw away perfectly good, unexpired , unsold food at end of the day just to keep prices unnecessarily inflated. Ends up have to contend with ever ballooning healthcare costs to run hospitals etc. See: Half of S’pore’s elderly found to be frail, mostly due to malnutrition By*TAN WEIZHEN Spoiler Half of S’pore’s elderly found to be frail, mostly due to malnutrition By*TAN WEIZHEN A study spanning 14 years and counting has found that half of the elderly here are frail. Photo: unsplash.com Published20 JUNE, 2017 UPDATED 20 JUNE, 2017 Overwhelming majority of them were single, divorced or widowed: NUS study SINGAPORE — A study spanning 14 years and counting has found that half of the elderly here are frail — especially the low-income, and those who are single, divorced or widowed — due to factors including malnutrition, lack of exercise and having chronic diseases. With the number of the elderly living alone set to rise, the researchers of the National University of Singapore study yesterday noted that elderly who are frail are twice as likely to die earlier compared to their peers, and stressed the need for senior citizens to take matters in their own hands. “There is much that older people can do for themselves to avoid becoming frail and disabled, so it is vital that they pay attention to a good-quality diet and nutrition, engage in physical exercise, and participate in socially and cognitively stimulating activities,” said Associate Professor Ng Tze Pin, who is the lead researcher. At the same time, voluntary welfare organisations and healthcare providers should also work together and roll out programmes for the elderly to have more nutritious meals, or do strength-building exercises such as tai chi or squats. The longitudinal study was started in 2003, and involved almost 3,000 elderly aged 55 years and above, with the oldest resident being 96 years old. It found that malnourishment was a big factor in causing frailty. More than half of those who were frail were found to be malnourished — a proportion that was more or less in line with the international average. Socio-economic factors could lead to malnutrition, Assoc Prof Ng said. “Eating is also very social, you’re more likely to eat more with others than alone. So imagine an old person living alone at home, and they’re probably not eating full meals every day, especially if they have no spouse. Also, they may be too poor to afford nutritious, good meals, and more often than not they are simple and bland,” he added. Appetite and absorption of nutrients also gets poorer with age, and the situation is worsened if they lose their teeth, he noted. Having chronic diseases was also a major factor, with about 80 per cent of the frail elderly having five or more chronic diseases. Among the frail elderly, 60 per cent had no formal education, 66 per cent lived in one- or two-room flats, while 45 per cent lived alone. An overwhelming majority — 91.5 per cent — were single, divorced or widowed. Assoc Prof Ng — who is from the Department of Psychological Medicine at the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine — said that compared to their peers, elderly folk who are physically frail are two to 10 times as likely to become “functionally disabled”, or have a physical or mental impairment that limits their capacity for independent living. He added: “When physical frailty and cognitive impairment are present together in the same individual, he or she is more than 20 times as likely to become disabled, hospitalised or die earlier.” A separate study — conducted between 2010 and 2013, involving 250 elderly folk aged 65 years and above — found that intervention measures such as physical and cognitive training, and more nutritious meals, reduced frailty and depressive symptoms among the respondents. Their cognitive functioning also improved. Following the findings of the two studies, the NUS research team is working with the national Geriatric Education and Research Institute, as well as social service organisations, to develop and implement pilot frailty screening, and community intervention programmes. Between 2000 and 2014, the proportion of one-person households in Singapore increased from 8 per cent to 11 per cent, Social and Family Development Minister Tan Chuan-Jin said in a 2015 speech. In the speech, he also touched on how changes in family structures — fewer nuclear family households, small household sizes and more aged households — could prompt a re-examination of the way the Government crafts its policies. Read more at https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/half-spores-elderly-found-be-frail-mostly-due-malnutrition
THANK YOU for double confirming what this thread is all about- which is that the threat to Singapore's existence is greater from the UNHEALTHY lifestyles and behaviors of Singaporeans inside than from foreign armies outside of Singapore attempting to attack us, as represented by much higher annual Singapore government budget for the ministry of health than defence spending of Singapore .
