$3.13b of health expenses went to stress-related illnesses

35% of attendances in primary care are related to stress conditions.

About 18% or $3.13b of Singapore’s overall health expenditure went to treating chronic stress-related conditions, a report by Cigna and Asia Care Group revealed.
The report further found that out of the nine markets including countries in Asia and Europe, Singapore’s health care spend recorded as the second highest, behind Australia’s 18.8%.

Costs are mostly felt in the country’s primary care, where over 35% of all attendances are related to stress conditions. About 19% of emergency department attendances are also stress-related. Meanwhile, the government and private sector similarly incurred huge spending with $22.68m and $4.4m respectively, still owing to stress-induced illnesses.

With outpatient settings on the other hand, expenditure was less manifest, with only 12% accounting for the service spend on stress-related health disorders. This may be due to the system of referral which controls access to outpatient care via redirecting patients back to primary care, the report read.