SINGAPORE - Senior citizens on the Pioneer Generation Package will soon receive letters informing them of their Medisave top-ups for 2018, which will be credited to them in July.

A total of $180 million will be disbursed under this scheme for the year, the Ministry of Finance said on Monday (June 11).

The amount of Pioneer Generation Medisave top-up for each pioneer ranges from $200 to $800 annually for life, and is part of the Pioneer Generation Package which thanks pioneers for their contributions to the country.

This year, pioneers born between 1945 and 1949 will receive $200, while those born between 1940 and 1944 will receive $400. Pioneers born between 1935 and 1939 will get $600, and those born in 1934 or earlier will get $800.

The total $180 million payout in top-ups this year is the same as that in 2017.

The Pioneer Generation Medisave top-ups are in addition to the Medisave top-ups for Singaporeans aged 65 and above in 2018, which come under the GST Voucher Scheme.

For example, an older pioneer who is 85 years old this year, lives in a Housing Board flat and does not own a second property will receive a total of $1,250 in Medisave top-ups this year. This consists of $800 in Pioneer Generation Medisave top-up and $450 GST Voucher - Medisave top-up.

Pioneers may use these Medisave top-ups to pay for their MediShield Life premiums and other Medisave-approved insurance plans, hospitalisation, day surgery and certain approved outpatient treatments, including renal dialysis and chemotherapy.

This is the fifth year that pioneers are receiving their Medisave top-ups since the scheme started in 2014. There are currently about 400,000 senior citizens on the Pioneer Generation Package, down from 420,000 the year before.

These include 1,846 seniors who have successfully appealed for and been granted the Pioneer Generation Package. These appeals were mostly based on citizenship grants, as the appeal panel looked into whether these seniors became Singapore citizens shortly after 1986.