Before you read further, let me clarify that this view is only applicable to those who have all the money to pay for the premium and living an extremely good life and want to live forever. I came to this view after watching a short 2 mins of the SG+ on the Medishield Life and the views expressed by a super talent who was obviously very rich and paying was not an issue. This super talent was so excited and exuberant, and was all praises for the Medishield Life Scheme and I can understand why.
The Medishield Life has to be compulsory so that the cost of premium can be shared by everyone to be affordable. If you allow those losers, those that cannot afford to pay for the premium, those whose life is better dead than alive to opt out then the premium would have to be much higher. So it is crucial that no one be allowed to stay out of this wonderful scheme.
Did I get the feeling that the rich and those who have a wonderful life to live on is roping in all the poor who rather die to help to finance their good life? The TV crew did an on the spot interview with some of the heartlanders and one interviewee pointedly insisted that he wanted to opt out of the scheme. He was a pensioner, no income, how to pay for the premium? Without an income even $10 is too much for him. Unfortunately he cannot get away. It is compulsory and he would have to find a way to pay.
As for the rich, they would all love to pay. And it would be so nice if they can get the poor to help out to defray the cost. The reluctant poor, the unwilling poor, the poor that wanted to die than to live, must not get away from paying. It does not matter whether they want it or not, it does not matter whether they need it or not, just make them pay.
No one bothers about lowering medical cost which is the main cause of fear of not being able to pay. And if there is such a great Medishield Life Scheme, the medical cost can continue to go up and away since there is this scheme to pay for it. Did anyone mention that they want to prevent a buffet syndrome? Didn’t they know that with this scheme, they are actually encouraging the buffet syndrome directly as everyone would feel more comfortable to seek medical services? Those that would have little reason to want to live would also choose to seek medical treatment since they have been compulsorily made to pay for it.
Shouldn’t those that have a good life to live and to live forever and so happy to have such a medical insurance scheme be paying for themselves and not imposing or compulsorily forced those that cannot afford to pay to be robbed into paying? I am so happy too, I think I can afford to pay with the help of those that cannot afford to pay but forced by compulsion to pay and reduce what I have to pay. I would say a big thank you to them too. Needless to say, I too would be very happy with this Medishield Life. The only problem is that I do not know when misfortune will strike and I would find that I would not have the money to pay for the premium. Then I don’t think I would be happy like the happy rich anymore.
Mind you, don’t ever think that you would always have the money to pay even if you can afford it today. If you don’t care a damn about those who cannot afford to pay and still wanting them to cough out blood to defray your cost, you are likely to end up like them one day. What goes around will come around. Getting the poor to subsidise the rich is simply wicked.
Chua Chin Leng aka redbean
* The writer blogs at http://mysingaporenews.blogspot.com