100,000 Women Lack Medishield & Vital to join MediShield

That was the Headline flashed in the yesterday's Sunday Times. About 100,000 women in Singapore do not have Medishield insurance coverage and risk having to shoulder hefty medical Bills. They are mainly housewives with no medisave savings. Such women are noted for being not covered either due to "pure ignorance or when their coverage lapses over time.It was brought up in the NTUC forum as "Even as we live longer and need more health care, we have lesser means to pay for them."

NTUC intends to reach out to this group to encourage women to sign up for the Medishield. It was also brought upwomen with no Medishield coverage are probably uninformed or unwillimg to strain family relations by asking their family to get them onto the scheme. It was suggested that monthly contributions by husbands to their wives' CPF accounts must become a social norm or be regulated.

On the same day, there was another article whereby the Health Minister , Mr. Khaw Boon Wan has stressed that it is vital to join Medishield. He related a recent case whereby a man whose father had to be warded after being infected by H1N1 virus. In fact he was admitted to a hospital's intensive care unit, where charges are higher. However there was never a word about how the family can't afford to pay, although he has come from a family with average income. They have Medisave and Medishield coverage and thus no problems with paying the hospital bills.

This. Mr. Khaw said, underscored the importance of insurance scheme. "Imagine without Medishield and Medisave, a few thousand dollars become impossible to pay...but to benefit from it, you must be in it," he said, urging Singaporeans, especially the self-employed, to sign up.

We should just ride on the recent development of the H1N1 virus, lack of MediShield by housewives as well as the Health Minister's comments to influence more people to take up our PruShield + Extra! It is never a better time than this!! Haha!