Pioneers to get Large MediSave Top-Ups Each Year

1. Members of Singapore’s Pioneer Generation will receive letters from the Government this coming week, informing them of their respective Pioneer Generation MediSave top-ups. Approximately 440,000 Pioneers will receive the Pioneer Generation MediSave top-up in July. A sample of the letter is at Annex A (224 KB).

2. Apart from MediSave top-ups, the letters will remind Pioneers of the other benefits that they also get: 

- Special subsidies at all Community Health Assist Scheme (CHAS) clinics, polyclinics, and subsidised specialist outpatient clinics when they show their Pioneer Generation card;

- Special subsidies for MediShield Life (MSHL) premiums. The subsidies for MSHL premiums will be available at the end of this year when MSHL is introduced. Together with the Pioneer Generation Subsidies and Medisave top-ups, Pioneers will pay smaller MSHL premiums than they did in previous years, despite the larger benefits that they, like other Singaporeans, will receive under MSHL.

MediSave Top-Ups for Pioneers

3. The amount of Pioneer Generation MediSave top-up for each Pioneer ranges from $200 to $800 annually. This year, about $202 million in MediSave top-ups will be disbursed to Pioneers under the Pioneer Generation Package. 

4. Further, the Pioneer Generation MediSave top-ups come on top of the MediSave top-ups for older Singaporeans under the GST Voucher Scheme ^[1]. Both of these are permanent schemes, disbursed yearly in July and August respectively. For example:

- An older Pioneer who is 85 this year, who lives in an HDB flat and does not own a second property, would receive a total of $1,250 in MediSave top-ups this year ($800 Pioneer Generation MediSave top-up and $450 GST Voucher – MediSave).

- A younger Pioneer who is 71 this year and in similar circumstances would receive a total of $650 in MediSave top-ups this year ($400 Pioneer Generation MediSave top-up and $250 GST Voucher – MediSave).

About the Pioneer Generation Package (www.pioneers.sg)

5. The Pioneer Generation Package was introduced to honour and thank our Pioneers for their hard work and dedication. This special cohort has made Singapore what it is today. To be eligible for the Pioneer Generation Package, living Singapore citizens have needed to meet two criteria:

a. Aged 16 years and above in 1965 (born on or before 31 December 1949, i.e. aged 66 years and above in 2015), and

b. Received their citizenship by 31 December 1986.

6. The Pioneer Generation Package comprises the following lifetime benefits:

a. MediSave top-ups of $200 to $800 annually. The amount is based on the birth year. Pioneers born earlier receive more top-ups, as they typically have accumulated less savings.

b. Special subsidies for outpatient care:

i. additional 50% off subsidised treatments at polyclinics and specialist outpatient clinics;

ii. special subsidies at general practitioner ( gp) and dental clinics under chas; and

iii. cash of $1,200 a year for those with moderate to severe functional disabilities under the pioneer generation disability assistance scheme.

c. MediShield Life premium subsidies of 40% - 60%.


Issued by the Ministry of Finance 
Singapore
14 June 2015

^[1] The amount of GST Voucher – Medisave that an individual can receive is dependent on age, Annual Value (AV) of place of residence, and the number of properties owned. More information can be found at https://www.gstvoucher.gov.sg. Pioneers get MediSave top-ups on top of the GST Voucher scheme. On the other hand, the amount of Pioneer Generation MediSave top-up that a Pioneer can receive depends only on year of birth. A Pioneer will receive the same amount annually, regardless of the AV of place of residence or the number of properties owned.