Singapore legislation

Regulation 43

of Healthcare Services (Nursing Home Service) Regulations 2023

Regulation 43

Financial counselling

Subregulation 1

A licensee must before providing any care or treatment to, or conducting a procedure on, a patient, provide the information on the fees charged by the licensee for the care, treatment or procedure, to the patient or (if the patient is a minor or lacks mental capacity) a next‑of‑kin or carer of the patient.

Subregulation 2

For the purposes of paragraph (1), the information on the fees payable for the care, treatment or procedure must include —

(a)

the estimated price range of the fees for the care, treatment or procedure;

(b)

the fee benchmark for the same or similar care, treatment or procedure that is published on the website of the Ministry of Health at https://www.moh.gov.sg (if available);

(c)

whether any part of the fees mentioned in sub‑paragraph (a) may be —

(i)

deducted from any medisave account;

(ii)

reimbursed under the MediShield Life Scheme; or

(iii)

reduced by any subsidy or grant under a public scheme; and

(d)

any other benefit that the MediShield Life Scheme provides to the patient in respect of the care, treatment or procedure, if any.

Subregulation 3

A licensee need not comply with paragraph (1) if the patient is assessed by a medical practitioner to be in a critical condition and needs to receive the care, treatment or procedure without delay.

Subregulation 4

Where a licensee intends to make any change in the average monthly fees payable for the care or treatment that is provided to a patient on an on‑going basis, the licensee must provide the information on the change in fees to the patient or (if the patient is a minor or lacks mental capacity) a next‑of‑kin or carer of the patient before implementing the change.

Subregulation 5

For the purposes of paragraph (4), the information on the change in fees for the care or treatment must include —

(a)

the fees that is currently charged for the care or treatment and the new fees that will be charged for the care or treatment;

(b)

the fee benchmark for the same or similar care or treatment that is published on the website of the Ministry of Health at https://www.moh.gov.sg (if available);

(c)

whether any part of the new fees mentioned in sub‑paragraph (a) may be —

(i)

deducted from any medisave account;

(ii)

reimbursed under the MediShield Life Scheme; or

(iii)

reduced by any subsidy or grant under a public scheme; and

(d)

any other benefit that the MediShield Life Scheme provides to the patient in respect of the care or treatment, if any.

Subregulation 6

The licensee must, after providing the information mentioned in paragraph (2) or (5) to the patient or the next‑of‑kin or carer of the patient, obtain an acknowledgment from the patient, next‑of‑kin or carer (as the case may be) and keep the acknowledgment as part of the patient’s patient health record.

Subregulation 7

In this regulation, “medisave account” means a medisave account maintained under section 13 of the Central Provident Fund Act 1953.

Read in full context — Healthcare Services (Nursing Home Service) Regulations 2023 →