Is it really a good deal for patients?

sgCR wonders if patients really benefit from this scheme...
-----------------------------------------------------------
Feb 22, 2007
Heart pill: Pay $1,000 less the NUH way
When discharged, patients get one year's supply, covered under Medisave, insurance

By Health Correspondent, Salma Khalik

FOR subsidised heart patients in need of potentially life-saving medication, where they get treated could mean a difference of more than $1,000 when footing the bill.

At the National University Hospital (NUH), a patient gets a year's supply of medicine when they are discharged, covered by Medi- Shield or Medisave. At the National Heart Centre (NHC), however, a patient gets only three months' worth of drugs. After that, they have to pay for it out of their own pockets.

About 5,000 people here are fitted with stents each year. More than half get drug-eluting stents (DES), devices that slowly release medication to prevent the artery walls re-thickening. But they increase the risk of getting blood clots.

So such patients are usually given two antiplatelet drugs for at least a year to prevent the formation of blood clots that could cause a fatal heart attack.

One of the drugs is simple aspirin, which costs only a few cents per pill.

The other, Plavix, costs about $4 each. No generic brands are available for this; neither is there a subsidy for the medicine once the patient leaves the hospital.

But NUH provides a whole year's supply of Plavix when patients are discharged, so it forms part of their hospital bill.

This means that they can claim the cost of medicine against any hospital insurance they may have, or from their Medisave account, so long as it is within their claim limits.

At NHC, the same patient will get only three months' supply of medicine on discharge.

NUH's Associate Professor Tan Huay Cheem told The Straits Times: 'It's such an important medicine, I don't want patients to miss out on it because they can't afford to pay.'

He sees nothing wrong in adding it to the hospital bill for insurance claims, as 'it is part of the medical treatment and there is a real danger if patients stop taking it'.

For Mr Ong Wee Chai, 43, who had a DES inserted at NUH last month, having a year's supply of medicine with him is a real blessing.

'That pill (Plavix) costs more than my lunch,' said the senior petroleum storage technician.

Married with a 10-year-old son, his salary of $2,600 a month is comfortable. But his sudden illness and the need to take five different types of medicine a day could prove a drain on his resources if he needs to pay for it all with cash.

Over at NHC, Associate Professor Koh Tian Hai said only 1.3 per cent of patients with the DES get blood clots within nine months of getting stents inserted. Of these, one in four gets clots because the patient had stopped taking medication.

But he said that with the expansion of Medisave - the portion of CPF used to pay for treatment of serious medical problems - from last month to cover chronic heart problems, patients can draw on their accounts for up to $300 a year.

While this is not enough to cover the additional nine months' supply of Plavix, patients can also draw on the Medisave accounts of family members.

Explaining why patients are given only three months' supply, Prof Koh said their cases have to be reviewed to see if it is safe for them to continue taking the medicine.

He added: 'Furthermore, drug potency is ensured when medication stocks are not kept for excessively long durations by patients.'

Prof Tan assured patients that NUH ensures that drugs given for a year are within the expiry period, so potency is not affected.

Madam Halimah Yacob, who heads the Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Health, feels strongly that the Government should subsidise drugs that are a necessary part of treatment.

Failing that, she said the heart centre should follow NUH's practice: 'NUH did the smart thing. That's what doctors are trained to do, to keep patients alive.'

salma@sph.com.sg

Abalone - Net weight & drained weight

"zero reception fee"

Consumer Council

Interest rates are subject to periodic review and may be revised at bank's discretion

Citibank Singapore
No, you shouldn't be looking at the 2%p.a.*. The most important statement on Citibank's Step-Up Interest Account is what sgCR has reproduced above, in the title...The sentence (Interest rates are subject to periodic review and may be revised at bank's discretion) means that Citibank can change the interest rate of this savings/checking account.

Consumers misled by food labels - report

Special reports | Guardian Unlimited

Nutrigenetic test kits don't deliver

CHOICE

CPSC guidelines on drawstrings in upper garments (PDF file)

208.pdf (application/pdf Object)

how to contact budget airlines

Like with all consumer transactions, sgCR recommend that consumers get written confirmation of transactions between them and budget airlines, e.g. when the airlines "confirm" that a flight has been successfully rescheduled. But what if the budget airline does not have an email address, or a postal address?

sgCR found that some budget airlines are, shall we say, "running efficiently". One example is Jetstar Asia. A postal address and phone number are provided, but not an email address. sgCR managed to get an email address though...customer.relations@jetstarasia.com...

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (Amendment) Bill 2007

MAS :News Room, Policy Statements and Speeches:
The 2nd reading of the MAS (Amendment) Bill has passed. Of particular interest to the consumer would be the point below

"Powers to approve a dispute resolution scheme
12. A key aspect of consumer empowerment is to provide consumers with recourse to an affordable, accessible and independent dispute resolution mechanism. It is therefore important for MAS to have the authority to approve schemes for the resolution of disputes arising from the provision of financial services in Singapore. The proposed new powers will also enable MAS to require a financial institution to be a member of an approved dispute resolution scheme and to comply with the prescribed terms of that membership."

Spam Control Bill

Home/Publication/Bills2007
The Spam Control Bill has been introduced. Do take a look at it...

Love Canal | EPA History | US EPA

Love Canal | EPA History | US EPA

Jon Ronson: Who are the favoured targets for the junk mail juggernauts?

Weekend | Guardian Unlimited

Which? is taking legal action over rip-off replica football kits

Which? | Consumer rights | Football shirts

OFT launches Scams Awareness Month 2007

OFT launches Scams Awareness Month 2007

Public Consultation on the Proposed Health Products (Medical Devices) Regulation

HSA/News Centre/Press Releases

List of Suspended and Withdrawn CaseTrust Members

Know our CaseTrust Members!
scroll down to the bottom of the above webpage, and you will find 2 companies have been suspended recently...

Recent Anti-spam Judgments

Newsletter from the Danish Consumer Ombudsman
Based on the tonnes of spam emails that most Singaporeans received everyday, the Spam Control Act can't come soon enough. The link above showcases how the Danish authorities enforce their spam control regulations.

Organic or non-organic?

AsiaOne Health

Pet Shop Grading

Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore
AVA will be coming out with a pet shop grading scheme, which is good news for consumers, and bad news for errant pet shops...

Travel Agents Regulations

TRUST Website
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) recently amended the Travel Agents Regulations. An initial reading of the changes show that the amendments amount to a relaxation of the regulations, with the major change being the removal of requirements for documents, pamphlets, and advertisements to contain details, e.g. duration, price, nature of accommodation, cancellation fee, etc.