Ong Ye Kung on viability of not-for-profit private acute hospitals

The Ministry of Health (MOH) is consulting the healthcare industry to establish a next private hospital, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung. Replying to an MP’s questions in Parliament on Monday (Feb 5), he said much attention has been given to the proposed not-for-profit feature, but that is not the key feature. Instead, the more important features are serving primarily Singaporeans, stronger governance and cost-effective care. Mr Ong said the Government wants to establish a new private hospital model with these key features to provide a better range of options in the healthcare landscape. MOH believes it can increase the options for lower-cost private hospitals so that private healthcare better complements public healthcare and provides a more adequate range of options for Singaporeans. He said Singapore is better off with a “variegated” system. Mr Ong said MOH has received good responses from professionals and industry. He added that he is sure that it will receive many useful inputs and suggestions on how Singapore can improve and refine its model and “make it a success”.