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Guides / Healthcare and protection

Healthcare costs after 65: the premiums you'll pay in cash

Updated 1 October 2026

When people in their 50s worry about healthcare, they picture one big hospital bill. That risk is real, and Singapore's schemes are built to soften it.

The cost that catches people out is quieter. It's the premiums. They rise every few years, and after a certain point part of them comes out of your cash, not your MediSave. If your retirement budget doesn't have a line for that, it's missing something you'll pay for the rest of your life.

Here's how the layers fit together, and where the cash comes in.

Layer one: MediShield Life

Every Singapore Citizen and Permanent Resident is covered by MediShield Life. It's built for large bills in B2 and C wards at public hospitals, where Government subsidies can cover up to 80% of the bill.

For treatment from 1 June 2026, it pays up to $200,000 a policy year, with no lifetime limit. You still share the cost in two ways:

  • A deductible, which is a fixed amount you pay before MediShield Life starts paying. You pay it at most once each policy year.
  • Co-insurance, which is a percentage of the claimable amount after the deductible. It starts at 10% and falls to 3% as the claim gets bigger.

MediShield Life premiums can be paid in full from MediSave.

Layer two: an Integrated Shield Plan, if you have one

An Integrated Shield Plan wraps MediShield Life with extra private cover from an insurer. People buy one for A or B1 wards, private hospitals, or to choose their own doctor. You can only hold one at a time.

The premium has two parts, and they're paid differently.

The MediShield Life part is fully payable from MediSave. The private part is payable from MediSave only up to an Additional Withdrawal Limit. Anything above that is cash.

Your age next birthdayYearly MediSave limit for the private part
40 and below$300
41 to 70$600
71 and above$900

CPF's own guidance says the private part can cost up to five times your MediShield Life premium by your 70s or 80s. Premiums aren't fixed, either. Insurers can raise them over time.

Put those two facts together. In your 70s, the private part of your plan could cost far more than $900 a year, and MediSave covers only $900 of it. The rest comes from your cash or your monthly payouts.

So before you decide anything about your plan, find out what you pay now, what you'd pay at 70 and 80, and whether your retirement income can carry it. CPF's Health Insurance Planner can help you see that.

Layer three: CareShield Life, for long-term care

Hospital insurance pays for treatment. It doesn't pay for years of help at home after a stroke or with dementia. That's what CareShield Life is for.

It pays a monthly cash amount for life if an MOH-accredited assessor finds you can't do three of six daily activities on your own. Those six are washing, dressing, feeding, toileting, walking or moving around, and moving from a bed to a chair.

Whether you're in depends on when you were born:

  • Born in 1980 or later: you're covered automatically from age 30.
  • Born between 1970 and 1979 and insured under ElderShield 400: if you hadn't developed severe disability, you were moved into CareShield Life on 1 December 2021.
  • Born in 1979 or earlier and not moved in: joining is optional. From 1 January 2026, you can join only if you have no pre-existing disability.

That last point is the one to act on. If you were born before 1980, aren't covered and want to be, you have to apply while you have no disability at all.

Payouts rise each year until you turn 67 or make a claim. From 2026 to 2030 that yearly increase doubled from 2% to 4%. As an example, CPF says someone born in 1980 who makes a successful claim in 2026 gets $689 a month for life. Premiums can be paid in full from MediSave.

A newer way to build up MediSave

If your MediSave balance is on the low side, look at the Matched MediSave Scheme. It started on 1 January 2026 and runs for five years. For eligible Singapore Citizens aged 55 to 70, the Government matches cash top-ups to MediSave, up to $1,000 a year. CPF checks who qualifies and tells them. Top-ups that get the match don't also get tax relief.

What to put in your retirement budget

Three lines, not one:

  • Your yearly premiums for every health and care policy you hold, today and at 70 and 80
  • How much of each your MediSave can pay, and how much is cash
  • A cash amount you'd be comfortable spending on a deductible and co-insurance in a bad year

When you add these up, you may find two plans that overlap, or a rider you don't remember buying. You may also find a gap, often in long-term care.

Bring your policy documents and your CPF Healthcare dashboard to a free retirement review, and we'll put every premium you pay on one page with you.

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