Money can’t buy good health, but it can help you protect the health you have.
Health insurance is often overlooked, misunderstood or taken for granted in Singapore, where we have our compulsory MediShield Life Plan to fall back on. Private insurers offer Medisave-approved Integrated Shield Plans (IP), which act as add-ons to MediShield Life and offer more comprehensive protection.
A brief overview of our four Raffles Shield Base Plans
Raffles Health Insurance (RHI) is the latest Insurer in Singapore to offer one such IP, known as Raffles Shield. Before we delve into the details of the titular ‘A+RH’ special hybrid plan offering under Raffles Shield, let us have a brief overview of the four Base Plans available:
| Plan | Ward Entitlement |
|---|---|
Raffles Shield Standard | B1 at GRH |
Raffles Shield B | B1 at GRH |
Raffles Shield A | A at GRH |
Raffles Shield Private | A at GRH and Private Hospitals |
As illustrated in the table above, the different Raffles Shield plans offer different coverages for wards at Government Restructured Hospitals (GRH) and Private Hospitals. Zooming in on the Raffles Shield A and Private plans, we can see that the main difference between them comes with admissions to Private Hospitals.
While a stay at a Private Hospital is 100% pro-rated (100% of the eligible bill is paid by us) under the Raffles Shield Private plan, this is not the case under the A Plan (a co-payment is incurred).
Can I stay at a Private Hospital without paying the price tag for a full Private plan and incurring a co-payment?
As you may have guessed, this is where the hybrid nature of Raffles Shield’s ‘A+RH Option’ comes in handy, as it combines the benefits of an ‘A plan’ with the offerings of a Private plan.
To have a better understanding about how the hybrid plan works, let us first breakdown each of the two plans that our hybrid plan consists of. For calculation purposes in the example, the ‘A’ plan and Private plan will be represented by Raffles Shield A and Raffles Shield Private respectively.
| “A" Plan (Raffles Shield A) | Private Plan (Raffles Shield Private) |
|---|---|
Covers up to Class A wards in all GRH | Covers up to Class A wards in both GRH and Private Hospitals |
Co-payment/Pro-ration required when visiting Private Hospitals | Co-payment/Pro-ration not required when visiting Private Hospitals |
Lower premiums | Higher premiums |
Example
| “A" Plan (Raffles Shield A) | Private Plan (Raffles Shield Private) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Yearly Premiums* | $112 | $339 | ||
Admission at GRH | Assuming eligible bill of $10,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | Assuming eligible bill of $10,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | ||
Admission at Private Hospital | Assuming eligible bill of $20,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | Assuming eligible bill of $20,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | ||
Assuming ONE admission after 5 years | Amount paid in premiums: $560 | Amount paid in premiums: $1,695 | ||
*The yearly premiums for the example above is based on the premiums for a 31 year old individual.
Pros and cons of getting an 'A' Plan
From the example above, we can see that the benefit of getting an ‘A’ plan over getting a Private plan mainly stems from the savings in yearly premiums. Over 5 years, someone with an ‘A’ plan pays more than $1,000 less in premium payments than another person with a Private plan.
The downside to getting an ‘A’ plan is that you need to be sure that a Private Hospital stay is not something you are interested in, as just one admission to a Private Hospital would incur a heavy co-payment and see all the savings you got on your yearly premiums wiped out.
Pros and cons of getting a Private Plan
Conversely, if you purchased a Private Plan, the example indicates how you should always stay at a Private Hospital to get your “money’s worth” out of your plan. If you decide to stay at a GRH instead, the coverage would be the same, but you would have spent over $1,000 more than someone covered under an “A” Plan.
Introducing the Raffles Hospital (RH) Option
This clear segregation between GRH and Private Hospitals can be upsetting to some of us due to the limited flexibility of choice afforded to us. After all, we are looking ideally for the best of both worlds, with comfortable healthcare at affordable prices.
This is where Raffles Shield’s special ‘Raffles Hospital (RH) Option’ comes into play. As part of Raffles Medical Group (RMG), Raffles Health Insurance has special access to Raffles Hospital, a 380-bedded Tertiary Private Hospital with specialists spanning 35 disciplines.
The ‘RH option’ is a feature exclusive to Raffles Shield. It is an add-on to a Raffles Shield A plan, hence its hybrid nature and the term “A+RH”, and allows you to stay at any GRH Class A ward or Raffles Hospital with full pro-ration.
Admissions to other Private Hospitals are still possible, although you will incur the co-payment element in the same was as an “A” Plan.
Raffles Shield A+RH Option - Private healthcare access at a lower cost
Essentially, the Raffles Shield A+RH Option acts as a middle ground, offering you access to Private Healthcare at lower premiums than a Private plan. Yearly premiums for this plan are about 30% lower than other Private plans available on the market.
In this way, the A+RH Option gives you the cost savings of an ‘A’ plan, while also providing you with the option of Private Healthcare, allowing you the availability of choice.
| RH Option |
|---|
Add on to Raffles Shield ‘A’ plan to have the choice of staying at Raffles Hospital, a Private Hospital, with no co-payment. |
Adding Raffles Shield A+RH Option into the mix
| “A" Plan (Raffles Shield A) | Hybrid Plan (Raffles Shield A+RH) | Private Plan (Raffles Shield Private) | |
|---|---|---|---|
Yearly Premiums* | $112 | $223 | $339 |
Admission at GRH | Assuming eligible bill of $10,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | Assuming eligible bill of $10,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | Assuming eligible bill of $10,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) |
Admission at Private Hospital (excluding Raffles Hospital) | Assuming eligible bill of $20,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | Assuming eligible bill of $20,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | Assuming eligible bill of $20,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) |
Admission at Raffles Hospital | Assuming eligible bill of $20,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | Assuming eligible bill of $20,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) | Assuming eligible bill of $20,000 (after MediShield Deductible and Copayment) |
Assuming ONE admission after 5 years | Amount paid in premiums: $560 | Amount paid in premiums: $1,115 | Amount paid in premiums: $1,695 |
*The yearly premiums for the example above is based on the premiums for a 31 year old individual.
Is Raffles Shield A+RH Option suitable for me?
The scenario above illustrates how an admission to a Private Hospital, Raffles Hospital, would cost less with the A+RH hybrid plan than with a conventional Private plan, saving you close to $600.
Yearly premiums for the Raffles Shield A+RH plan also lie in between an ‘A’ plan and a Private plan. This makes it a cost-effective choice for anyone who would like Class A ward coverage at GRH with the option of Private Healthcare as well.
Learn more about Raffles Shield A+RH today
Raffles Shield A+RH Option allows access to Private Healthcare at one of the lowest premiums on the market. This is possible as RHI is the only insurer backed by a medical group.
Speak to our Raffles Health Advisor today to learn more about Raffles Shield A+RH option!
For more details about Raffles Shield plans, click here.
