Healthcare costs, education stress: Incoming Minister of State Shawn Loh on adopting ‘listening approach’

Healthcare costs for seniors and stress in schools are among the concerns Shawn Loh has heard as he prepares to become Singapore’s Minister of State for Education and Health on Jan. 1, 2027.

Rather than announce firm priorities before taking office, Loh says he plans to listen first. He wants to hear from residents beyond his Jalan Besar GRC constituency, as well as education officers, nurses, doctors and other professionals working in the two large ministries.

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I’m deliberately suspending judgment, and deliberately not trying to prescribe what I think are my ideas without first listening.

“I’m deliberately suspending judgment, and deliberately not trying to prescribe what I think are my ideas without first listening,” he told CNA. Loh said both education and health affect virtually all Singaporeans and that policymaking should take account of the people who deliver the policies.

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Some have outlived their savings, some have outlived what they provisioned for, for their healthcare, and there’s a lot of uncertainty because they don’t know how much more they have to pay for healthcare.

In the Whampoa ward, which has an ageing population and young families moving into new Build-to-Order flats, Loh said seniors had described uncertainty over healthcare costs. Some, he said, had outlived their savings or the money they had set aside for medical care.

Parents have also told him that excessive pressure in education can damage children’s enjoyment of learning. Loh said some stress can help children grow, but too much unnecessary stress “destroys the joy of learning for many of our children”. He has raised issues including the Silver Support Scheme, childcare, infant care and student care in Parliament, and says these concerns will inform his work in the new role.

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Destroys the joy of learning for many of our children.