Need insurance advice?

If you’re reviewing your family’s health insurance plans for the new year, here are some handy tips from a couple of providers in Singapore.

#1 Topping up your insurance

Workers in Singapore often have some level of health insurance provided by their company. If you’re one of them, you should check whether the policy adequately covers your needs – in many cases, an add-on is a good option. The team at Expat Insurance explains how it works.

Company medical insurance is often minimal, covering only basic emergency and hospitalisation bills that wouldn’t be sufficient in the case of a serious illness or accident. Without full coverage, you’ll need to pay out of your own pocket. To ensure you’re comprehensively covered, consider topping up your existing personal or employee medical insurance plan.

To do this, you can simply make an appointment with your current health insurance provider and they can assess the gaps between what you have and what you actually need, whether your plan is from your company or a policy you’ve taken out on your own.

There are two main ways to proceed. You could opt for top-up insurance schemes to be added to your existing plan (for example, adding accident, dental and optical cover or boosting the annual and lifetime limits on your plan). Or, you could decide to increase or decrease your deductibles, which is the amount that you’ll need to pay upfront for your medical bills while your insurance provider covers the rest. So, you could have a higher hospitalisation deductible in exchange for a reduction in your annual limits for dental.

expatinsurance.com.sg

#2 Covering yourself for critical illnesses

Illness can strike at any time, whether you’re young or old. Not all health insurance plans cover costs for critical illnesses, and treatment costs can quickly add up. UEX Global tells us why getting cover for this scenario is so important.

When a critical illness strikes you or someone in your family, it’s not only an emotional and physically challenging time but it can also take a toll on your finances. Having health expenses covered can significantly help to lighten the load, helping you to focus on getting well or take care of your ill family member. This critical illness coverage is particularly crucial if you have a family history of such illnesses.

UEX has health insurance plans that include cover for expenses related to critical illness such as organ transplants, cancer treatments, kidney dialysis and radiotherapy. For instance, the “UEX & APRIL Hospital & Surgery Level 3” coverage pays for expenses that support the recovery process. The policyholder will be fully covered for cancer treatment specialist consultations, diagnostic scans and tests, medicines and drugs, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Also, there’s a lifetime benefit of up to $270,000 and $135,000 for congenital and hereditary conditions, and hospice and palliative treatments respectively. The plan also offers full coverage for kidney dialysis (while admitted to the hospital or outside of the hospital) as well as coverage for donor costs of up to $65,000.

uexglobal.com