Please note that only Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents with a CareShield Life policy are currently eligible to apply.
Importance of Long-Term Care Planning
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Facts & Figures
- Singaporeans have a life expectancy of 84.8 years, making it the longest in the world[1]. As you age, the risk of becoming disabled may also increase.
- 1 in 2 healthy Singaporeans aged 65 could become severely disabled in their lifetime, and may need long-term care. It is further estimated around 3 in 10 could remain in severe disability for 10 years or more[2].
- The old-age dependency ratio (the number of elderly people at an age when they are generally economically inactive compared to the number of working people) has been increasing year-on-year from 2017 to 2019[3]. Over time, this potentially indicates more financial stress and greater dependency on the working population and your loved ones.
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6 Activities of Daily Living (ADLs)
- Washing – The ability to wash in the bath or shower (including getting into and out of the bath or shower) or wash by other means.
- Dressing – The ability to put on, take off, secure and unfasten all garments and, as appropriate, any braces, artificial limbs or other surgical or medical appliances.
- Feeding – The ability to feed oneself food after it has been prepared and made available.
- Toileting – The ability to use the lavatory or manage bowel and bladder function through the use of protective undergarments or surgical appliances if appropriate.
- Walking or Moving Around – The ability to move indoors from room to room on level surfaces.
- Transferring – The ability to move from a bed to an upright chair or wheelchair, and vice versa.
Here’s how Care Secure enhances CareShield Life coverage for disability.
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Lifetime coverage with monthly disability benefit of up to $5,000 if you are disabled[4] and cannot perform two or more ADLs. This benefit payout[5] depends on your disability status[4] and the monthly disability benefit level[6] chosen by you.
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Pay for premiums using up to $600 (per insured person per year) from your MediSave account.
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Comprehensive benefits such as support benefit, dependant benefit, and death benefit.
Enjoy these additional benefits.
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If you are unable to perform at least two ADLs, we will provide a lifetime monthly payout based on your disability status[4] and the monthly disability benefit level[6] chosen by you.
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If you become disabled and have at least one dependant[8], we will pay 25% of the disability benefit[5] as dependant benefit[9] every month for up to 36 months in your lifetime.
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To help you on your recovery journey, we will pay a support benefit[7] of up to 600% of the disability benefit.
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We will pay 300% of the disability benefit[5] in the event of death and on the condition that you were already receiving the disability benefit. The policy terminates thereafter.
Your policy toolkit.
Policy conditions
Your queries answered.
Product
Care Secure is an insurance plan which pays you a monthly sum for life if you become and continue to be disabled. It is designed to provide benefits to meet the needs of those who would like more comprehensive disability cover.
As shared by MOH, 1 in 2 healthy Singaporeans aged 65 could become severely disabled in their lifetime, and may need long-term care. It is further estimated around 3 in 10 could remain in severe disability for 10 years or more. Therefore, you should buy Care Secure to help expenses for the care of a person with severe disability.
As the application is subject to underwriting, you are encouraged to apply Care Secure as early as you reach age 30. This is because the older you get, the higher the risk of you having various medical conditions and we may not be able to grant you cover.
Also, premiums are based on your entry age. Entry age refers to the age as at your last birthday that you apply for Care Secure. This means that the earlier you apply for Care Secure, the lower premium you will have to pay.
If you become and continue to be disabled, we will pay a monthly disability benefit for life, as shown in the table below.
| Disability Status | Benefit |
| Moderately disabled | 100% of disability benefit |
| Severely disabled | 100% of disability benefit less the CareShield Life benefit that applies to you |
Disability means moderate disability or severe disability, as appropriate. Disabled means having a moderate disability or severe disability.
Moderate disability or moderately disabled means your inability to perform two of the following activities of daily living (ADL), which means requiring significant assistance from another person throughout the entire activity.
Severe disability or severely disabled means your inability to perform at least three of the following activities of daily living (ADL), which means requiring significant assistance from another person throughout the entire activity.
Activities of daily living (ADL)
- Washing – the ability to wash in the bath or shower (including getting into and out of the bath or shower) or wash by other means.
- Dressing – the ability to put on, take off, secure and unfasten all garments and, as appropriate, any braces, artificial limbs or other surgical or medical appliances.
- Feeding – the ability to feed oneself food after it has been prepared and made available.
- Toileting – the ability to use the lavatory or manage bowel and bladder function through the use of protective undergarments or surgical appliances if appropriate.
- Walking or Moving around – the ability to move indoors from room to room on level surfaces.
- Transferring – the ability to move from a bed to an upright chair or wheelchair, and vice versa.
When we have approved the claim, we will pay the first payment of monthly disability benefit on the day immediately after the deferment period. We will then pay it on the same day every month. If we do not approve the claim until after the deferment period, the first payment of the monthly disability benefit will be treated as due from the day immediately after the deferment period. If you recover from the disability but become disabled again, you are entitled to further payment of this benefit.
If you are receiving CareShield Life benefit, we will automatically consider you to be severely disabled. CareShield Life means a severe disability insurance product administered by the Government and governed by the Relevant Act.
To avoid doubt, if you become severely disabled, we will still pay the disability benefit less the CareShield Life benefit that applies at the time, even if your CareShield Life plan had ended, as long as you have a Basic ElderShield plan and your Care Secure policy has not ended.
If you become and continue to be disabled, we pay the support benefit shown in the table below.
| Disability Status | Benefit |
| Moderately disabled | 300% of disability benefit |
| Severely disabled | 600% of disability benefit |
We will pay the support benefit immediately after the deferment period. The maximum support benefit we will pay is 600% of the disability benefit. If you become moderately disabled and then recover, you can only make another claim for the remaining amount of support benefit if you later become severely disabled.
If you have at least one dependant and you become disabled, we pay the dependant benefit, which is 25% of your disability benefit, every month for up to 36 months in your lifetime. This benefit depends on the following conditions.
- If you recover from the disability and you have not fully used the amount under this benefit, you may make another claim for the remaining amount if you become disabled again as long as we have not paid for more than 36 months in your lifetime.
- If the child is no longer considered a child (because of their age or otherwise) at any time after we have begun paying this benefit, we will continue to pay this benefit until your death or you recover from the disability. The payment will then end.
We only have to start paying the dependant benefit after the deferment period.
We pay the death benefit, which is 300% of the disability benefit, if you die during the term of your policy and while receiving the disability benefit.
There is waiting period of 90 days from the commencement date or reinstatement date, whichever is later, except for claims resulting from an accident. If you become disabled during the waiting period (other than due to an accident), your policy will end and you will receive a full refund of the premium.
To claim under your policy, you must send us a completed claim form. A certification by an approved assessor under the Relevant Act that you are suffering from disability must also be sent to us.
Deferment period means the 90-day period from the claim date (inclusive). We will pay the first benefit payment immediately after the deferment period. We treat the claim date as the date on which the claim form for your policy is certified by an approved assessor under the Relevant Act.
If you have recovered from a disability but become disabled again from the same cause within 180 days, we will not enforce the deferment period for the new claim. If you suffer disability arising from the same cause after the 180-day period, or suffer a disability arising from a different cause, the deferment period of 90 days applies for the new claim.
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Footnotes
- The Burden of Disease in Singapore, 1990 – 2017, www.moh.gov.sg/resources-statistics/singapore-burden-of-disease-report-2017^
- Ministry of Health, Why do you need to plan for your future long-term care needs?, www.moh.gov.sg/careshieldlife/long-term-care-financing^
- Ministry of Health, Population and Vital Statistics, www.moh.gov.sg/resources-statistics/singapore-health-facts/population-and-vital-statistics^
- Moderate disability or moderately disabled means your inability to perform two ADLs, which means requiring significant assistance from another person throughout the entire activity.
Severe disability or severely disabled means your inability to perform at least three ADLs, which means requiring significant assistance from another person throughout the entire activity.^ - During the waiting period, we do not pay any claim except claims resulting from an accident. If you become disabled during the waiting period (other than due to an accident), your policy will end and you will receive a full refund of your premium.
In order to claim under Care Secure, a certification by an approved assessor under the Relevant Act that you are suffering from disability must be sent to us. Relevant Act means the Central Provident Fund Act (Chapter 36) or CareShield Life and Long-Term Care Act 2019, and subsidiary legislations as amended, extended or re-enacted from time to time.
If you become and continue to be disabled, we will pay a monthly disability benefit for life. If you become moderately disabled, we will pay 100% of the disability benefit. If you become severely disabled, we will pay 100% of the disability benefit, less the CareShield Life benefit that applies to you. If you are receiving CareShield Life benefit, we will automatically consider you to be severely disabled.
We will pay the first benefit payment immediately after the deferment period. Deferment period means the 90-day period from the claim date (inclusive). We treat the claim date as the date on which the claim form for your policy is certified by an approved assessor under the Relevant Act.
If you have recovered from a disability but become disabled again from the same cause within 180 days, we will not enforce the deferment period for the new claim. If you suffer disability arising from the same cause after the 180-day period, or suffer a disability arising from a different cause, the deferment period of 90 days applies for the new claim.
The CareShield Life payout (if any) will be administered by the Singapore Government.^ - You can purchase Care Secure at monthly benefit levels from $1,200 to $5,000 in multiples of $100.^
- If you become and continue to be disabled, we will pay the support benefit. If you become moderately disabled, we will pay 300% of the disability benefit. If you become severely disabled, we will pay 600% of the disability benefit. If you are receiving CareShield Life benefit, we will automatically consider you to be severely disabled. The maximum support benefit we will pay is 600% of the disability benefit.
If you become moderately disabled and then recover, you can only make another claim for the remaining amount of support benefit if you later become severely disabled. To avoid doubt, if you recover from moderate disability, and become moderately disabled again, we will not pay this benefit.
We will pay the support benefit immediately after the deferment period.^ - Dependants are:
- Your child (or children);
- Your husband or wife;
- Your parents (biological parents, step-parents, or parents who legally adopted you); and
- Your parents-in-law.
Child means your biological child or stepchild, or legally adopted child, who has not reached the age of 21 years on the claim date.^ - Dependant benefit depends on the following conditions:
- If you recover from the disability and you have not fully used the amount under this benefit, you may make another claim for the remaining amount if you become disabled again as long as we have not paid for more than 36 months in your lifetime.
- If the child is no longer considered a child (because of their age or otherwise) at any time after we have begun paying this benefit, we will continue to pay this benefit until your death or you recover from the disability. The payment will then end.
We will start paying the dependant benefit after the deferment period. If you recover from the disability or die after we have started paying disability benefit, support benefit or dependant benefit, the dependant benefit will end immediately on the date of your recovery or death (as the case may be).^
Important Notes
This is for general information only. You can find the usual terms and conditions of this plan in the policy conditions. All our products are developed to benefit our customers but not all may be suitable for your specific needs. If you are unsure if this plan is suitable for you, we strongly encourage you to speak to a qualified insurance advisor. Otherwise, you may end up buying a plan that does not meet your expectations or needs. As a result, you may not be able to afford the premiums or get the insurance protection you want. If you find that this plan is not suitable after purchasing it, you may terminate it within the free-look period, and obtain a refund of premiums paid.
This policy is protected under the Policy Owners’ Protection Scheme which is administered by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC). Coverage for your policy is automatic and no further action is required from you. For more information on the types of benefits that are covered under the scheme as well as the limits of coverage, where applicable, please contact Income Insurance or visit the GIA/LIA or SDIC web-sites (www.gia.org.sg or www.lia.org.sg or www.sdic.org.sg).
Information is correct as at 2 January 2025.
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