Mental Healthcare Support for Public Officers

Ms Hazel Poa asked the Prime Minister (a) whether expenses incurred by public officers for mental healthcare treatments, such as therapy sessions and medications at public or private medical institutions, are reimbursable under the MediSave-cum-Subsidised Outpatient medical benefits scheme; and (b) whether the Government intends to improve the medical benefits for mental healthcare for public officers and, if not, why not.

Mr Chan Chun Sing (for the Prime Minister): Yes, under our medical benefits schemes, public officers can seek reimbursement for medical treatments for mental health conditions prescribed by doctors registered with the Singapore Medical Council and carried out at hospitals/clinics licensed under the Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics Act, subject to the prevailing guidelines.

The Public Service has been and will continue to enhance its efforts to care for and look after the mental health of officers. Public officers can access free counselling through a mental health hotline which provides a safe channel to speak to trained counsellors. A wide range of mental health programmes has been curated to support public officers, such as mindline@work, which is a one-stop repository of self-help resources, and wellness activities that cover topics relating to mental well-being, physical health and nutrition. The Public Service also has a network of over 2,000 mental health ambassadors who are trained to look out for and support officers who may appear stressed or need to talk to someone.