Surgical fee benchmarks will help patients make more informed decisions
SINGAPORE — The consumer watchdog here and several professional bodies said the Ministry of Health (MOH) publishing the fee guidelines for more than 200 common surgical procedures is a "good step" and they will help patients make more informed decisions.
Mr Loy York Jiun, executive director of the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case), told TODAY that the benchmarks “make surgical fees more public and transparent for consumers", thus allowing them to compare prices and make better decisions.
By setting an upper limit, the fee guidelines will also help to limit excessive mark-ups in surgical fees, he said. Private surgeons who charge prices over the recommended upper limit should provide a reasonable explanation to the consumer to justify their higher fees, he advised.
Since patients may not know what surgical procedures the doctors will recommend before consultation, and may not be able to check the fee guidelines, Mr Loy also encouraged surgeons to give their patients some time to consider the costs "before confirming the procedure”. One way to help patients is for surgeons to display the MOH fee guide in their clinics for the procedures that they perform, he suggested.
Case said that it has not received any complaints so far from patients who have been overcharged for private surgical procedures.
In total, eight complaints were received between 2014 and 2017, and four complaints were made between January and October this year, but most of them involved unsatisfactory service.
EMPOWERING PATIENTS
Dr Lee Yik Voon, president of the Singapore Medical Association (SMA), said that the guidelines are one of several ways that rising healthcare costs can be addressed, and that they will “facilitate patient empowerment and promote trust in the doctor-patient relationship”.
The benchmarks will help doctors when they set their fees and patients, too, benefit in two ways. First, in cases where doctors follow the benchmarks, sick patients no longer need to delay treatment as they await prior approval from insurance companies for claims.
Second, if they are allowed to consult any doctor who charges according to the fee benchmarks, they can have wider choice of doctors.
Dr Lee added that insurance companies stand to benefit as well because they will no longer need to appoint insurance panels, and can save on administrative costs.
Adjunct Assistant Professor Tan Tze Lee, president of the College of Family Physicians Singapore, said that while the guidelines are mainly for specialist procedures, family physicians and general practitioners (GPs) who have to refer their patients to specialists can use them to help patients anticipate how much the costs will be. They can also use the guidelines to help their patients choose the appropriate specialist and setting to suit their means.
Family physicians and GPs can discuss with their patients how their individual cases may be more difficult or complex, he added. Where, or if, required, they may help patients assess and make an appropriate alternative choice.
In a separate statement on Tuesday, the Life Insurance Association Singapore said that the benchmarked charges will help bridge the “information asymmetry gap” that now exists between healthcare providers and consumers.
The set of guidelines will be an extra reference point for insurers when reviewing if fees being claimed are “reasonable and customary”, and will help to mitigate cases of over-charging.
Insurers can also be empowered to detect inflated claims and take an active approach towards claims adjudication, its spokesperson added.
