Telemedicine services have seen a huge boom during the COVID-19 pandemic, as more and more patients feel comfortable seeking medical services and visiting their doctors online.
As part of the gradual introduction of the upcoming Law on Health Services, the Ministry of Health (MOH) plans to license telemedicine services in the middle of next year.
Earlier in February, it introduced a voluntary list of direct telemedicine providers who agreed to adhere to certain measures, such as ensuring that their doctors or dentists complete e-learning about telemedicine from the Ministry of Health.
The list now includes more than 600 telemedicine providers, including public hospitals, clinics and telemedicine firms.
Only those listed can offer subsidies from the Health Care Scheme (Chas) and MediSave for video consultations for monitoring chronic diseases from April 1.
It initially covered only seven chronic conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and anxiety; but was expanded in October last year to include 20 other chronic conditions such as osteoporosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and ischemic heart disease.
Health services bill Parliament approved it in early January 2020. It replaces the Law on Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics, which was passed in 1980 and last amended in 1999.
It is then envisaged that the new law will be implemented in three phases from the beginning of 2021 to the end of 2022. The new time frame is now from September 2021 to March 2023.
Credit for featured images: After clinical hours
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