1. What is the criteria for inclusion in Health Connect Panel?
Our specialist doctors are carefully selected based on their years of experience, preferably more than 5 years and record of providing quality service to patients, reasonable fee structures in alignment with MOH guidelines. Our specialists are well renowned in their respective fields of practice in Singapore with a clean professional track record.
2. How many doctors do you have on your panel?
Our customers have access to more than 4,000 specialists of over 25 different medical specialties for their selection. They included all the relevant specialists in restructured hospitals and more than 300 private specialists. We are continually expanding our panel to provide the best possible medical expertise and specialist treatment for our customer’s healthcare needs.
We have forged close collaboration with Singapore General Hospital(SGH), Singapore National Eye Centre(SNEC), National Cancer Centre(NCC), National Neuroscience Institute(NNI), National Heart Centre(NHC) to provide priority queue in specialist appointment booking. The specialists from these esteemed hospitals are featured in our corporate website.
3. What is the representation of specialties in your panel?
Aligned to the common clinical conditions of our customers, we have a higher representation in our panel across medical specialties which include cardiology, gastroenterology, general surgeons, neurology, obstetrics & gynaecology, oncology, ophthalmology and orthopaedic, paediatric specialists, among others.
4. Could you provide some indication of surgeon fee guidance for those on panel? How does MOH fee benchmarks works?
Our panel specialists adhere to the panel fee framework which is consistent with the Ministry of Health (MOH) Fee Benchmark. Fee benchmarks are MOH’s recommended range of private surgeon fees for surgeries. They provide a reference of whether the surgeon fees for a typical case are reasonable.
The benchmarks are meant to cover routine and typical cases. Each benchmark is a range of fees, to cater for some variation in patients’ conditions but they exclude patients whose conditions are of high complexity or who may be very ill. The lower end of the fees is generally associated with less complex cases, whereas the higher end of fees is associated with more complex ones. A case that is complex may require significantly more time or effort and therefore the higher bound may be reasonable. Cases charging towards the upper bound or higher need to be reviewed on cases by case basis, subject to the justification provided by the treating doctor.
5. What are the benefits of choosing Health Connect Specialists?
Our customers will receive end-to-end support for your specialist healthcare and hospitalisation needs (inpatient and day surgery) from the recommendation of appropriate specialists for the necessary consults/treatments, specialist appointment scheduling, to pre-authorisations for eligible medical expenses, right to direct claims settlement between Great Eastern and the hospital/MOH accredited day surgery centre.
With pre-authorisation issued, customers will also have their co-payment expenses for their supplementary plan capped at $3,000 and be covered for 365 days of post-hospitalisation treatment.
6. Can you provide some insights into why doctors do not choose to be on panel? Are there fees to be paid to the insurer?
We are unable to comment on why doctors do not choose to be on a panel. We do not charge any fees for doctors to join our panel.
1. Are the panel specialists easily accessible?
Yes. Our specialist clinics are located island-wide to provide greater accessibility. We have specially selected specialists across more than 25 different medical specialities on our panel for your personal selection.
View the full list of our panel specialists here.
2. Is it easy to request for an appointment via Health Connect?
Yes. Please note that you may request for an appointment via:
1. Online request here
2. Health Connect hotline at 6563 2233.
3. Email us your request at Pre-Authorisation@healthconnect.com.sg
We will confirm your specialist appointment within three business days from your request. An email confirmation will be sent to you once the appointment is fixed.
3. How does the online request work?
Simply visit our website, select a panel specialist, enter your NRIC and date of birth to let us know who you are, enter your preferred dates and submit your request. We will liaise with the clinic and inform you of the confirmed booking through the email and mobile number you provided to us.
4. Am I able to schedule an appointment with the restructured hospital specialists?
Yes, you can schedule an appointment with the restructured hospital specialists who are featuring on our corporate website through Health Connect to obtain priority queue in specialist appointment booking. For appointment with rest of the specialists, you can book through the respective hospitals directly.
5. Can I change my specialist appointment after it is confirmed?
Yes, you may contact the specialist clinic directly to change your appointment.
1. Can I get a pre-approval* for my proposed medical or surgical expenses if I call Health Connect?
You may request for a pre-approval of your planned admission/surgery provided if the specialists are practising in the following in Singapore:
1. a Restructured Hospital; or
2. a Private Hospital/Day Surgery Centre and on our panel.
*Assessment of eligible medical expenses is based on the coverage on your GREAT SupremeHealth, GREAT TotalHealth and/or GREAT TotalCare policies (if any). For expenses which are ineligible, payment will need to be made upon your discharge
2. How do I go about getting my eligible medical expenses pre-approved if I am now consulting a Panel Specialist?
You can do so through the following ways if you need to go for a planned treatment or surgery:
a) If you are at the panel specialist clinic, you can ask the panel specialist to assist you in requesting for the pre-approval of your medical expenses.
b) Download the online fillable form and email it back to us at Pre-Authorisation@healthconnect.com.sg or call us at 6563 2233 and we will guide you accordingly. Do ensure to allow sufficient time of at least three to ten working days before your surgery date, to submit the form to us for our assessment.
3. How is the pre-approval application process like?
Once we are notified of the pre-approval request, here is what will happen next:
4. What does the certificate cover me for?
It covers you for:
5. My specialist recommended additional treatment during my admission, will my certificate still be valid?
A re-assessment will be required, please be assured that we will work with your specialist directly. We will inform you of the outcome accordingly.
6. What happens if my admission details changes, and my certificate will need to be updated?
Please call our Health Connect hotline at 6563 2233 or email us (Pre-Authorisation@healthconnect.com.sg) for assistance.
1. What should I do in an emergency situation?
Health Connect service is to assist with the pre-approval for planned hospitalisation. In an emergency situation, please proceed with the necessary medical and/or surgical treatment.
2. What if an emergency occurs and I have to receive medical treatment as soon as possible, and there is not enough time to contact Health Contact for a panel doctor for pre-authorisation? Would they be subjected to the 5% co-payment of the medical bill under the GREAT TotalCare supplementary plan?
From 1 April 2021 onwards, GREAT TotalCare customers who are admitted into a hospital as a result of an Emergency which is consistent with the policy definition, will have the co-payment amount capped at $3,000 even if there is no certificate of pre-authorisation issued.
1. Are there any medical expenses which are not eligible for request of pre-approval?
Please note the following items:
For questions on any of the above, please do call us. The claims for the above-mentioned items can either be submitted via e-filing or manually.
2. Currently I am seeking a medical and/or surgical treatment with a non-panel specialist, should I switch to a Health Connect panel specialist?
To fully enjoy the Health Connect services as our GREAT SupremeHealth customers, you may consider switching to our panel specialists.
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