REVIEW OF MEDISAVE-CUM-SUBSIDISED OUTPATIENT SCHEME

Ms Irene Ng Phek Hoong asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance whether his Ministry will review the Civil Service Medisave-cum-Subsidised Outpatient Scheme for dependants of female civil servants to ensure equal treatment with their male counterparts.

Mr Lee Hsien Loong: The Civil Service reviews its medical benefits regularly. Under the Medisave-cum-Subsidised Outpatient (MSO) Scheme, introduced in 1994, we have aligned the treatment in medical benefits between male and female officers. They receive the same additional 1% monthly contribution to their Medisave account which they can use for other family members, including dependants.

The only slight difference is in outpatient benefits. Women officers are not eligible to claim outpatient subsidy for their husbands or dependent children. However, this difference was effectively removed in 2001 when the Government decided to transfer any unused balance in the annual cap of $350 to the officer's Medisave account at the end of each year. The officer can then use this amount in Medisave according to Medisave guidelines.

The basic philosophy of the civil service is that its medical benefit schemes should reflect the values and practices of our Asian society, where typically the husband is responsible for taking care of the family. We should be careful to avoid inadvertently sending a signal that husbands no longer have this responsibility, by changing long-established practices before the social reality has adjusted. However, as I mentioned at the last Committee of Supply, this is not set in concrete, and the civil service will continue to review the MSO scheme periodically as our society evolves.