Insurance, compensation and service injury

The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) provides a comprehensive range of schemes for its servicemen in the unfortunate event of service injuries or accidents.

MINDEF/SAF Group Insurance

Benefits

As a full-time National Serviceman, you will receive $300,000 Group Term Life and $300,000 Group Personal Injury insurance coverage, with the insurance premiums paid for by MINDEF/SAF.

Read on to find out more.

Service injury

What is a service injury

An injury is considered to be a service injury if it fulfils any of the following criteria:

• It was sustained in consequence of some act lawfully performed in the discharge of a service personnel’s duties. For example, an injury sustained during training.
• It was sustained whilst on a journey necessary to enable the service personnel to report for duty or to return home after duty. For example, an injury sustained while travelling straight from home to camp or vice versa.

If you sustain an injury while in service and is determined that the injury is due to service, you will be accorded fully subsidised medical benefits at all government hospitals or polyclinics for the treatment of the injury for as long as you require the treatment. If hospitalised, you will be subsidised up to your eligible ward.

The following are not considered service injuries:

• Injury sustained by a service personnel who was not performing an authorised task
• Injury sustained where journey to and from home or the office was diverted for personal or non-official reason(s) or purpose(s)

What to do if you have sustained an injury while in service

If you have sustained an injury during your service, you must:

1. Report immediately to your unit’s Medical Officer, and S1 or department Administrative Officer. This allows your unit or department to attend to your injury and assist you in your injury claim, as appropriate.
2. If you wish to file for service injury, submit an injury report indicating your personal particulars, date, time, and place of the incident and circumstances leading up to your injury.
3. If you are filing for service injury, liaise with your unit or department on the submission of the following to substantiate your injury:

• Witness statements
• Medical documents or reports
• Training programmes
• Traffic police report and map detailing the route taken (if the circumstances of your injury involve a traffic accident)

4. Submit insurance claim to Singlife to assess eligibility of claim. More information can be found on Singlife's website.

If you are filing for service injury, your unit or department will submit the completed injury report and supporting documents to your Unit Commanding Officer or Head of Department for endorsement. They will then forward it to the MINDEF/SAF Human Resource Shared Services Centre (HRSSC) for assessment.

Ward eligibility

Ward eligibility is dependent on your rank and vocation at the time of service injury.

Should you choose to upgrade to a higher ward class, you will have to pay the full difference in the ward and meal charges between your eligible ward and the upgraded ward. For co-payment rates, please refer to the table below:

Claim for compensation

Medical treatment for your service injury at government hospitals will be fully subsidised if they are prescribed by your attending doctor. If hospitalised, you will be subsidised up to your eligible ward. If you request to be admitted to a class of ward higher than your eligible ward class, you will have to pay your medical bills in full and seek reimbursement later, based on your eligible ward. Only medical expenses incurred at government hospitals or polyclinics are reimbursable.

To be eligible for the fully subsidised medical benefits, you must:

• Seek treatment for your injury at government hospitals at your eligible ward class
• Be referred by a polyclinic, A&E of government hospital or SAF Medical Officer without specifying any consultant by name

The first consultation fee with no referral, referral by a private doctor or referral to a named consultation will not be subsidised.

During MINDEF's processing

While MINDEF determines whether your injury is a service injury, you will have to bear all expenses and seek reimbursement when your injury claim is approved by MINDEF.

For the reimbursement of the medical expenses, you will be required to submit the following:

• Original medical bills and receipts
• Medical co-payment slip
• CPF statements (if deducted from Medisave or MediShield account)
• Attending doctor’s memo certifying that the treatments and bills were incurred for the treatment of the service injury

After MINDEF’s processing

If your injury has been approved as attributable to service, you will be:

• Informed in writing by MINDEF/SAF HRSSC
• Issued with a Service Injury Card for fully subsidised medical benefits when seeking treatment for your service injury at government hospitals or polyclinics

Permanent disablement from service injury

If you are assessed with a likelihood of suffering permanent disability for your service injury, your unit Medical Officer will monitor your medical condition periodically until the injury has stabilised. Once your medical condition has stabilised, an SAF Medical Board will be convened for permanent disability assessment. You will be eligible for an award of disability compensation, known as the Duty Award. The quantum will vary according to the percentage of permanent disability endorsed by the SAF Medical Board.

Further enquiries

For more details, please approach your unit’s Manpower Officer, S1, Administrative Officer or Chief Clerk.