Just ask - The hospital fees in Singapore comparison to Philippine ?

Hi Aloha Chor in Singapore there are more transparency and better disclosure of hospital fees, and more comprehensive financial counselling in our hospitals compare to the public hospital in Philippine.
I used to have these wrong misconceptions though when you are seeking for medical advice from doctors in public hospitals, these are not reliable. However, I realized after visiting one of the Provincial hospital in Ilagan that the most of the well-trained doctors in the Philippines are serving government hospitals. What differs the Philippine government hospitals from the Philippine private hospitals is simply the facilities. Most of the public hospitals in the Philippines are not equipped with the latest technologies in medicine. the doctor in fact highlighted that the situation with the decreasing budget for health and the devolution of health services to cash-strapped municipalities, and the privatization of government hospitals, how can the poor access the necessary services? Moreover, the devolution, he said, “only reflects the government’s abandonment of its responsibility to promote and protect the people’s rights to health.” “The people’s health should not be compromised,” “Nor should the quality and availability of health services be made contingent on the people’s capacity to pay.”

When in the morning an old woman was catching her breath in front of the emergency entrance of the hospital. After being seen by a doctor, she was told to buy medicines for her respiratory problem. More than willing to take the medicines immediately for her comfort, she neither had money to buy the drugs nor to be admitted in the hospital. Left with no choice, she stayed in the waiting area in front of the Emergency entrance for almost half of the day waiting for her daughter, I guess that old woman was not alone. Relatives of other patients were there, too, thinking of ways to get help to pay for their bills. Some were asking who among politicians gave the larger assistance funds. Since the hospital has been striving to support its own operations these scenes are just ordinary occurrences in rural hospitals were poor patients could not shoulder the cost of hospitalization. Sometime, with some coordination government effort to make their fees more transparent to their patients and the public. This will allow members of the public who need to seek medical treatment to make more informed decisions with regards to their choice of healthcare provider and ward class.
As in Singapore the The Ministry of Health has been collecting data on charges for the different types of hospital procedures, both for the public hospitals as well as the private hospitals. The objective is to make information on hospital fees in both the public and private sector more easily accessible and user-friendly to the public. For greater transparency, the fees should:

(a). Indicate the estimated total charges (including the doctor?s fees) that the patient is likely to incur for a particular episode of care. The current practice of providing average bill size per day would be refined to better reflect the different types and complexity of treatment.
(b) Provide itemized charges so that patients know exactly what they are paying for.
An external agency like CASE was to audit and verify the data. The Ministry is prepared to collaborate with CASE and help co-fund the setting up of the necessary framework to enable the public to have timely and reliable information on hospital fees. The Ministry is, in particular, keen to work with CASE to:
(a). gather, verify and audit information on hospital fees
(b). explore how this information can be made easily understandable to members of the public
(c). explore ways to make this information as accessible to the public as possible (eg CASE?s website etc). This information would also be provided to patients during financial counseling in the hospitals.
In Singapore the Ministry of Health has already made it mandatory, under the Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics (PHMC) Regulations, for all hospitals to provide financial counseling to their patients prior to or upon admission. During counseling, patients are provided information on the estimated total bill for patient?s hospitalization, comparative information on the average bill size per day at the various public and private hospitals, and information on the use of Medisave and MediShield, including financial assistance schemes available like Medifund. Patients should have a reasonably good idea what their bill size would look like and be provided with detail of itemised charges for the medical condition that they are admitted for.

Extract From KK Hospital. Inpatient Class A Class B1 Class B2+ Class B2 Class C Daily Ward Fee A1 - $297.90 A2 - $217.10 $171.70 $110 $43 $22 Intensive Care Ward Fee $428.10 $352.40 $180 $98 $55 Daily Treatment Fee $58.60 $53.60 $26 $15.90 $10.60 Neonatal Ward/Nursery Charge $63.70 $63.70 $41 $41 $41 Daily Treatment Fee $31.30 $31.30 $15.90 $15.90 $15.90 Special Care Nursery $245.40 $209 $121 $85 $46 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Fee $481.60 $409.90 $238 $167 $95 Neonatal Daily Treatment Fee $70.70 $60.60 $35 $25 $15 Delivery Suite Charges 1st 4-hour Min Charge Subsequent Hourly Charge $52.50 $13.80 $40.50 $10.50 $32 $8 $28 $7 $16 $4 Delivery Fee Normal Delivery 1st Child 2nd Child 3rd Child 4th Child 5th Child onwards Caesarean Delivery # $656.30 $656.30 $656.30 $1,143.90 $1,487.20 $2,088 $479.60 $479.60 $479.60 $1,110.60 $1,443.80 $1,775 $380 $430 $475 $1,100 $1,430 $1,007 * $315 $370 $475 $1,100 $1,430 $540 * $262 $315 $475 $1,100 $1,430 $307 * X-Ray, Laboratory & Misc Specialised Investigation Fees $8 - $2,246.50 85% of Class A fees subject to a min of $8 per x-ray / test / investigation 50% of Class A fees subject to a min of $8 per investigation and a max of $530 group ceiling per admission 35% of Class A fees subject to a min of $8 per investigation and a max of $255 group ceiling per admission 20% of Class A fees subject to a min of $8 per investigation and a max of $159 group ceiling per admission Rehabilitation Services (per session) $13 - $144.50 $13 - $144.50 $6.50 - $71.50 $6.50 - $71.50 $6.50 - $71.50 Dietetics Services $11 - $44.50 $11 - $44.50 $8 - $30 $8 - $30 $8 - $30 Surgical Operation Fee (per procedure) # $395.50 - $7,562.50 $336.50 - $6,428.50 $195.50 - $1,007 $137 - $540 $78.50 - $307 Abortion Fee# $607 $516 $300 $33 $31 Sterilisation Fee # $737.50 $627 $365 $33 $31 *  Either the delivery fee or the operation fee, whichever is higher, will be charged. # These are only estimates as patients will be charged based on the time usage of the operating theatre. Notes The above charges apply to residents (Singapore citizens and permanent residents) only. We do not have a differential rate between Singaporeans and foreigners. However, we give Singaporeans a discount. The Normal Delivery Fee for non-residents is $853.19 regardless of order of birth. The baby's inpatient charges during hospitalization will be based on the mother's payment status at the time of delivery/admission. The charges are billed separately. The schedule of charges listed is effective 1 March 2004. All rates are in Singapore dollars and inclusive of 5% GST. All rates are subject to revision.

A study of hospital fees in the Dominican RepublicOre. Blues to impose fixed fee system.: An article from: National Underwriter Property & Casualty-Risk & Benefits Management