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​​​​​​Introduction to the Interim Disability Assistance Programme for the Elderly

​The Interim Disability Assistance Programme for the Elderly (IDAPE) is an assistance scheme that was set up in 2002 for a small group of seniors who were not eligible for ElderShield at the time, because they were too old or had pre-existing disabilities.  

If these seniors develop severe disability, they can receive $150 or $250 monthly cash payout (depending on their financial circumstances) for up to 72 months. There is no restriction on how the payments should be used, as long as they are used for the care of the disabled IDAPE claimant. 

For example, the payments can offset:  

  • Medical bills 
  • Nursing costs 
  • Hiring a foreign domestic worker (FDW) as a helper to care for the disabled IDAPE claimant  

The senior may nominate themselves, a caregiver who is 21 years old and above, or a nursing home that the senior is residing in to receive the IDAPE payout.

How to Qualify

If you are applying for IDAPE, here are the eligibility criteria:

Age

  • You must be Born on or before 30 September 1932; OR 

  • Born between 1 October 1932 and 30 September 1962 (both dates inclusive), with pre-existing disabilities as of 30 September 2002.

Household Means-Test

Household monthly income per person
 Monthly Cash Benefits
$0 – $2,000 *For household with no income, annual value (AV) of property must be ≤ $13,000
 $250
$2,001 – $2,800
$150

Nationality

You must be a Singapore Citizen and living in Singapore.

Needs Help with Activities of Daily Living

You must be unable to perform three or more of the six Activities of Daily Living, and certified by an approved assessor. These six activities are:




How to Apply

 

1. Complete your Long Term Care Schemes Application Form

Complete the Application Form For Schemes Administered by Agency for Integrated Care and go through the Terms and Conditions.

  • We recommend that you nominate the care recipient's bank account to receive the payout.
  • If the care recipient is residing in a nursing home, please approach the nursing home for assistance.

Should the care recipient lack mental capacity, please go through this Additional Guidance​.

2. Please visit the MOH Household Check website 

Visit this website if you need to update your household information, or if you have previously disallowed the access of your financial information for eligibility checks. 

3. Contact an MOH-accredited severe disability assessor for an assessment

Click here for the list of assessors. 

The assessor will conduct the disability assessment and collect an assessment fee from you. If your care recipient is found to be severely disabled, the full assessment fee will be reimbursed to you.

You visit an assessor's Clinic
 $100
An assessor visits your house
 $250

If the care recipient is residing in a nursing home, the nursing home can help you to submit a Resident's Assessment Form (RAF) in place of the severe disability assessment.

Submit Your IDAPE Application Documents To AIC

Send the completed application and any additional documents (if required) to AIC at:

Agency for Integrated Care
Singapore Post Centre Post Office
P.O. Box 1173
Singapore 914040

You can also e-mail these documents to apply@aic.sg, or submit them at any of our AIC Links located here.


After your application submission

AIC will take about 1 month to process your application. We will inform you of the outcome in writing and successful applicants will receive grants in the following month, which may include payouts from the month the application was submitted if applicant meets all eligibility.​​

Please contact us at 1800-650-6060 if you have not received the assessment fee reimbursement/payout.



Note:

1. If your care recipient is already a recipient of IDAPE and would like to change their details, please download and submit this Change in Application Details Form and Mental Incapacity Certification (if the care recipient lacks mental capacity).

2. If your care recipient is already a recipient of IDAPE but wishes to opt-out from receiving IDAPE payouts, please download and submit the Opt-Out Form to AIC.



​

Frequently Asked Questions

​ Do you have questions about IDAPE? We may have the answer here:.

​



You would need to visit a MOH-accredited severe disability assessor to be assessed whether you are severely disabled. You are likely to be assessed as severely disabled if you are unable to perform at least three activities of daily living (ADLs). These ADLs are bathing, dressing, feeding oneself, using the toilet, moving around and transferring.

For example, at least three of the following scenarios apply to you:

  • You may need to rely entirely on your caregiver to be fed
  • You may need to be bathed entirely by your caregiver
  • You may need to rely entirely on your caregiver to manage your diapers or catheter
  • You may need to rely entirely on your caregiver to be dressed
  • You need to rely entirely on caregiver to move over a distance, e.g. cannot walk on one's own or push oneself in a wheelchair
  • You need to be fully supported when being transferred from bed to chair, or chair to bed

You will be reimbursed fully for the assessment fee if you are assessed to be severely disabled. If you are assessed to have mild/ moderate disability, you may still be eligible for mild/ moderate disability assistance schemes like the Pioneer Generation Disability Assistance Scheme, Home Caregiving Grant and FDW Levy Concession.

​For information on the different levels of disability and how to apply for IDAPE and other disability schemes you may be eligible for, please refer to the Long Term Care Schemes Guide and Application Form.

​

Severely disabled individuals who wish to apply for IDAPE will need to undergo a severe disability assessment by a MOH-accredited severe disability assessor. A trained, accredited severe disability assessor will be able to assess whether the applicant meet IDAPE criteria of being unable to perform three or more of the six Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). We have expanded the list of accredited assessors to include therapists and nurses who have been trained.

Through the training, assessors have learnt to assess an individual's ability to perform the six ADLs, including specific components of each ADL to take into account, what factors to consider when an individual is cognitively impaired, and what should be done if any individual's functional ability fluctuates over time. As this is a complex process, the training and accreditation is necessary to ensure that disability assessments are conducted with a high degree of rigour and consistency.

The Government is also looking into recognising equivalent assessments that have been performed by a qualified healthcare professional (doctor, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, and registered nurses) providing care to the patient. In such cases, the patient need not undergo a separate severe disability assessment. Today, those who are staying in a nursing home can already approach their nursing home for assistance to submit the Resident's Assessment Form in place of the severe disability assessment.

​MOH and AIC will progressively roll out the use of such equivalent assessments and will make the information available via the MOH and AIC website.

​From 31 Jan 2020, the disability assessment fees for clinic-based assessments will be raised from $50 to $100, and for non-clinic-based assessment, raised from $150 to $250.

These fees were last reviewed in 2012. As recommended by the ElderShield Review Committee, the fees for severe disability assessments should be increased. This is in recognition that there has been an increase in complexity due to the enhancements to the assessment framework to take into account the impact of cognitive impairments on functional ability.

You will be fully reimbursed for the fees if assessed to be severely disabled.

The disability assessment form (for ElderShield) today states that an individual's cognitive capacity should be taken into consideration when an assessor is assessing the Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) ability, but it is not clear how assessors should do so consistently.

Under the new framework and revised training curriculum, assessors will be guided more explicitly on the aspects to take into consideration if an insured is suspected to be cognitively impaired. Assessors will therefore be better equipped to take into account the impact of cognitive impairment on an insured's functional abilities, which will result in cognitively impaired insureds with higher care needs being able to more consistently qualify for IDAPE.

​Individuals with dementia or other cognitive impairments will still need to undergo a disability assessment in order to qualify for IDAPE payouts, as their functional abilities may be affected in varying degrees by their cognitive impairment.

​Annual periodic re-assessment is required to assess if the beneficiary is still severely disabled and meets the IDAPE criteria. The periodic re-assessment fees are waived, regardless of the outcome of the assessment.

However, patients that were assessed as permanently severely disabled (e.g. Assessor statement by MOH accredited severe disability assessors) will be exempted from disability re-assessments, unless there is new information (e.g. doctor memo) suggesting that the patients have recovered.

Yes, you can reapply and receive IDAPE payouts again if assessed to meet the severe disability and all other eligibility criteria.​
The priority of IDAPE is to provide support for Singapore Citizens living in Singapore. PRs will not be eligible for IDAPE.​
The priority of IDAPE is to provide support for Singapore Citizens living in Singapore. Singaporeans residing overseas will not qualify for IDAPE.​

The IDAPE eligibility criteria is stricter than that of PioneerDAS and HCG.

For PioneerDAS and HCG, which are moderate disability schemes, individuals only need to require some assistance with 3 or more Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). For IDAPE, which is a severe disability scheme, individuals need to be unable to perform 3 or more ADLs (i.e. require significant assistance) in order to be eligible. As the IDAPE eligibility criteria is stricter, patients who are eligible for IDAPE can automatically receive PioneerDAS or HCG payouts without going for a separate assessment (subject to meeting the other non-disability eligibility criteria for these schemes), but not the converse.

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