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With hospitals and clinics well-placed to treat those who are very sick, Singapore’s healthcare priorities now include helping people stay healthy, and keeping seniors out of hospitals and nursing homes.

When Healthier SG kicks off in July, for instance, invited Singapore citizens and permanent residents who enrol with a general practitioner clinic or polyclinic to schedule an appointment will get $20 worth of healthpoints upon completion of the first free health plan consultation, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung in Parliament on Friday.

The 3,000 healthpoints, available through the Healthy 365 app, can be exchanged for vouchers from NTUC FairPrice, credits from TransitLink or other participating merchants.

Separately, the Land Transport Authority on Friday set out a plan to create what it calls Friendly Streets, which will incorporate elements from existing efforts to improve pedestrian safety and encourage the use of public transport and active mobility.

Under the new initiative, features from school zones, silver zones and transit priority corridors will be used in concert to make streets that are close to key amenities and transport nodes with high footfall less vehicle-centric.