At Changi international airport in Singapore (Photo: AFP) Hanoi (VNA) – The Singaporean Government hasbegun to charge COVID-19 patients who are unvaccinated by choice since December8.
In an interview granted to the Wall Street Journal, Singapore’sHealth Ministry spokesman said the new policy “reflects a civic and moral dutyeach of us have to ourselves and people around us, during exceptional timeslike a pandemic crisis.”
The spokesman said that unvaccinated people who fallill will still receive government support for treatment, even though thegovernment won’t automatically cover their full COVID-19 treatment costs as itdid before.
Hospital bills for COVID-19 patients in intensive carewards who receive COVID-19 therapeutics often run to about 18,000 USD,according to the spokesman.
But the Health Ministry says that means-testedgovernment subsidies for health care and the country’s national health insuranceprogramme would significantly defray costs, and can reduce the bill to about 1,500USD to 3,000 USD.
Singapore has already achieved one of the world’shighest vaccination rates, with 96 percent of its eligible population—whichexcludes categories such as young children—fully vaccinated, according to thegovernment.
In early November, the Singapore government said thatabout 95 percent of deaths over the past six months were of people 60 or older,with 72 percent of deaths occurring among those who hadn’t been fullyvaccinated./.
In an interview granted to the Wall Street Journal, Singapore’sHealth Ministry spokesman said the new policy “reflects a civic and moral dutyeach of us have to ourselves and people around us, during exceptional timeslike a pandemic crisis.”
The spokesman said that unvaccinated people who fallill will still receive government support for treatment, even though thegovernment won’t automatically cover their full COVID-19 treatment costs as itdid before.
Hospital bills for COVID-19 patients in intensive carewards who receive COVID-19 therapeutics often run to about 18,000 USD,according to the spokesman.
But the Health Ministry says that means-testedgovernment subsidies for health care and the country’s national health insuranceprogramme would significantly defray costs, and can reduce the bill to about 1,500USD to 3,000 USD.
Singapore has already achieved one of the world’shighest vaccination rates, with 96 percent of its eligible population—whichexcludes categories such as young children—fully vaccinated, according to thegovernment.
In early November, the Singapore government said thatabout 95 percent of deaths over the past six months were of people 60 or older,with 72 percent of deaths occurring among those who hadn’t been fullyvaccinated./.
VNA
