The twin measures are to counter escalating healthcare costs and mitigate new technologies' ethical risks.
SINGAPORE – Precision medicine therapies will be covered under MediShield Life as part of ongoing measures to keep such treatments affordable for Singaporeans, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung on Oct 10.
Precision medicine refers to the tailoring of treatments to meet the specific needs of patients, based on factors such as genetics, lifestyle and environment. He noted that while precision medicine will become mainstream clinical practice over time, healthcare financing systems are not designed to fully fund such treatments.
Health technology assessment has also been enhanced to “robustly evaluate” the cost-effectiveness of high-cost treatments, including precision medicine, Mr Ong said. Mr Ong also spoke of the need to mitigate the risks posed by healthcare technology, noting that while genes can now be edited to treat disease, such technology could also, in theory, be used to design babies before they are born or allow companies to select employees based on genetic qualities.
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