A new study has found Singapore to be the worst country for uninsured travellers if they require medical treatment when factoring in the cost and availability of care.
Healthcare is free or provided at a very low cost for residents in many countries, but it can be an entirely different story for those simply stopping by on holiday. A new study from Forbes Advisor, the financial guidance and price comparison platform, compared the price and availability of care in just under 60 countries to determine where you’d be in most financial trouble if you happened to need medical treatment while uninsured.
The country of Singapore ranks as the worst in the study, where its cost and availability of care make it risky to require medical care without cover.
Singapore’s out-of-pocket costs (those not reimbursed by local healthcare or medical insurance) are $1,105 per capita, which makes it the fourth highest cost in all countries analysed, behind the USA, Malta, and Switzerland.
While the standard of care in Singapore is considered very high, the data shows this care might not always be available to those who need it.
Singapore and its many islands have some of the lowest availability for medical services. Currently, the city-state has just two and a half practising doctors per 1,000 people and the same amount of hospital beds, which puts it in the lowest quartile, or bottom 25%, of all countries featured in the study for both of these ranking factors.
The South American country of Chile ranks second-worst in this index, with drastically lower out-of-pocket medical costs than Singapore, but also has lower standards when it comes to availability of care.
Chile’s residents spend $753 per capita out-of-pocket, which is less than in Singapore, but this sum represents well over a quarter (29%) of the country’s total health expenditure versus under a fifth of Singapore (19%), meaning that a higher proportion of healthcare in Chile is paid through personal expenses rather than local resident’s medical insurance.
Rounding out the top five, Bahrain, the United States, and Montenegro are the third, fourth, and fifth worst countries to get required treatment without travel insurance. Similar to Chile, Bahrain’s out-of-pocket costs are significantly lower than Singapore’s at $631 per capita.
However, despite Bahrain residents’ income being very high, the Middle Eastern island has just under one doctor per 1,000 people, ranking it second last behind India when it comes to availability. Additionally, it only has two and a half nurses or midwives per 1,000 people, the third-lowest after India and Colombia in second-last and last place, respectively.
When you go on holiday abroad, it is strongly recommended that you take out travel insurance in case you need urgent medical care while you are away.
While you can get discounted or free healthcare in some EU countries thanks to the Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC), and while some countries such as Australia have a reciprocal healthcare agreement that ensures UK nationals are treated as locals, most countries in the world will not provide this service.
Kevin Pratt from Forbes Advisor said, “No matter how prepared you are and what precautions you take, there is no way to fully prevent the possibility of needing medical care while you are away. There may be some arrangements in certain countries that mean you will pay less or even nothing for some healthcare services, but none of these is a substitute for a good travel insurance policy.”
“Finding the right cover based on your circumstances and destination is important. With cover in place, you can at least enjoy some peace of mind knowing that incurring necessary medical expenses while abroad shouldn’t break the bank.”
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