SINGAPORE — To commemorate 50 years of Singapore’s independence, all babies born next year will be eligible for free insurance by Singapore-based insurer Great Eastern (GE).

The integrated private medical insurance plan will be offered free for a year and covers hospitalisation at Class A wards at all restructured hospitals. The premium for a year for this plan is worth S$108.

Named the SupremeHealth A Plus, it is an upgrade from the basic MediShield plan that all newborn babies are covered under, unless parents opt out.

“As a homegrown company…I think we are very privileged to be able to play a part in Singapore’s growth, and provide insurance for many generations of Singaporeans. So our SG50 initiative is our way of giving back to the community,” said Great Eastern Singapore chief executive officer Khoo Kah Siang.

Expectant parents can register on www.greateastern.com/sg50, from Dec 1 onwards. They must be Singaporeans or permanent residents, or hold a Singapore address. Applications are subject to being underwritten, but Mr Khoo expects most babies to be able to qualify.

GE’S SG50 initiatives will also include fulfilling 50 selected wishes by Singaporeans, with the criteria that they must be meaningful, said Mr Khoo. They can submit via Wish Cards, or online, next year. The first 5,000 online entries will receive a limited edition ez-link card with a stored value of S$10.

“Broadly what we see as meaningful is wishes that support personal aspirations and dreams that celebrate life, be it for family, friends or yourself. We would also consider...those do-good wishes, those you wish for the betterment of lives of the community,” said Mr Khoo.

Great Eastern will also sponsor the 25,000 wishing spheres in the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown 2015, which is the curtain raiser for the nation’s SG50 celebrations.

To support the underprivileged, GE is also targeting to raise S$500,000 through a series of activities next year.

When asked about the expected cost of the SG50 initiatives, chief marketing officer Colin Chan would only say that it is a “significant” amount, given that there are about 40,000 babies every year.