Authorities should provide more details on MediSave payments for dental treatments

A recent case of two dentists charged with cheating and falsification of accounts related to false Community Health Assist Scheme and Central Provident Fund (CPF) MediSave claims prompted me to wonder if there is a detailed publicly-available list of dental procedures that are claimable under MediSave as well as the withdrawal limits.

After a search online, all I could find was an exhaustive list for medical procedures, but not one for dental procedures. 

I found this odd since the CPF rules state that dental treatments are generally not claimable under MediSave unless the treatment involves surgery and is performed due to medical reasons. This would mean that a full schedule of MediSave-claimable dental procedures and their claimable limits would be relatively short.

I wrote to CPF Board to request for such a schedule. To my surprise, it gave me a brief reply that was short on specifics. 

"The dentist would be more apt (sic) to advise on the table of surgical procedure performed based on the complexity of your surgery and the expenses claimable under the MediSave scheme," a CPF Board customer service executive replied.

She provided me with two broad categories of claims: 

1. Day Surgery: Up to a maximum of S$300 for daily hospital charges, including investigations and medicines.
2. Operation: A fixed limit for operation ranging from S$250 to S$7,550 depending on the type of operation performed.

While I am thankful for the CPF Board’s reply, knowledge of these broad categories and MediSave claimable range or limits is not helpful. How can I be assured that a dentist is not telling me one thing but submitting a claim for a different amount?

Perhaps there are safeguards in place. But we have already seen a few cases of dental chains and dentists cheating the CPF Board and its members.

Surely it would be better for the authorities to provide those seeking surgical dental treatment that qualify for MediSave claims with more detailed information so that they can have a better picture of the costs involved, instead of relying primarily on their dentists for such information?

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