While the Ministry of Health has worked with the private insurers to standardise the Standard Integrated Shield Plan’s (IP) benefits, the plan is provided and administered by insurers, and remains a private product.

Insurance companies compete in a competitive market and the products need to remain commercially viable. As such, similar to other existing IPs, premiums and underwriting for the additional private insurance component of the Standard IP are determined by insurers based on their own commercial considerations and risk assessment frameworks. There is therefore variance in the premiums, depending on each insurer’s approach and their respective risk pools.