SINGAPORE — Some 650,000 Singaporeans received about S$154 million in subsidies last year under the Community Health Assist Scheme (Chas), the Ministry of Health (MOH) said. This is more than 10 times the amount of subsidies given when the scheme was first launched in 2012.

Releasing the data on Thursday (Aug 23), the ministry also said that there are now some 1.3 million Chas cardholders — about five times more than in 2012.

Last year's subsidies were slightly less than the S$169 million the Government disbursed to 685,000 Singaporeans the year before.

Chas, which is administered by the Agency for Integrated Care, allows Singaporeans from lower- and middle-income households to receive subsidies for medical and dental care at more than 1,000 private general practitioners (GPs) and 700 dental clinics islandwide.

An MOH spokesperson said that about 181,000 patients on the scheme made claims for their chronic conditions last year, which amounted to about 688,000 visits to participating GP clinics. This is more than the 675,000 visits in 2016.

Last Sunday at the National Day Rally, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that the scheme will be extended to all Singaporeans with chronic conditions regardless of their income. No date has been set for the change to take effect.

Chas covers treatments for 21 types of chronic conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, stroke, asthma, major depression, schizophrenia, dementia, osteoarthritis, anxiety, Parkinson's disease, psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis.

The scheme subsidises treatment for common illnesses such as cold and cough for the lower-income and pioneers. It also subsidises screenings for some conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and colorectal cancer.

The amount of subsidies is tiered according to income, where the lower-income will receive the highest level of subsidies.

MOH said that it regularly reviews Chas to ensure that it continues to provide Singaporeans with affordable and quality primary care in the community. For instance, the age criterion was removed in 2014. A year later, the number of chronic conditions covered under Chas was increased for more coverage.

To qualify for the scheme, applicants must have per capita monthly income of S$1,800 and below (average income earned per person per household). For households with no income, the annual value of their housing unit must be S$21,000 and below.

All older citizens under the Government's Pioneer Generation Package receive Chas subsidies regardless of income or the annual value of their homes. These are those born in 1949 or before and who became citizens before 1987, who are supported financially in some areas of healthcare needs under the package.