ABSTRACT
Financing care for older adults has surfaced as a critical issue in many Asian countries experiencing rapid population aging. Such population aging is expected to result in increased need for long-term care services and in intensifying demand and expenditure for healthcare. Singapore's national aging policy has taken shape through several successive rounds of policy review. In terms of funding services for older adults and services for the general population, the state applies Western-style copayment principles wherever possible. The 1995 National Survey of Senior Citizens in Singapore found that financial problems and boredom were cited as major concerns during retirement. The healthcare financing system in Singapore emphasizes personal responsibility and family support, yet the community and the national government help the indigent and poor who cannot afford to pay for their basic healthcare needs. In view of projected demographic, epidemiological, social, and economic trends facing Singapore, existing tax-based healthcare financing would have to support the growing needs implied by these trends.
