Overview

According to the 2023 Legatum Prosperity Index, Singapore ranked 1st among 104 countries in the “health component” category, which measures the extent to which people are healthy and have access to the services needed to maintain good health. In the 2023 Global Hospital Rating conducted by Newsweek and Statista, the Singapore General Hospital was ranked ninth among the 250 hospitals rated. Singapore provides universal coverage for its citizens with multiple layers of care, and among its ASEAN peers, it spends the most annually on healthcare on a per capita basis. This is expected to rise faster than GDP given the country’s changes in demographics. According to the Ministry of Health, the Singapore National Health Expenditure could increase to US$43 billion in 2030. Healthcare spending, comprising both public and private healthcare expenditure, is expected to account for 5.9% of GDP and could go up to 9.0% by that same time. This increase is largely attributed to rising government spending on healthcare, as well as the local population’s consumption of healthcare services, due largely to an aging population and a trend towards earlier diagnosis of chronic conditions, close monitoring and follow-up.
   
Singapore serves as the healthcare and medical hub of the region and offers Asia’s best healthcare system. The Joint Commission International (JCI) has accredited 13 Singapore hospitals and healthcare facilities. Each year, Singapore draws almost 500,000 patients with its high-quality healthcare, mainly in the private sector. The medical tourism sector is predicted to be worth US$79.4 billion globally by 2032. Prominent international healthcare and research organizations such as Duke University, Cedars-Sinai, Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, and JCI have established a presence here. The research institutes work with scientists here to accelerate drug discovery and develop therapies for unmet healthcare needs. 

Singapore has strong fundamentals in healthcare excellence. This emphasis on quality care has enabled the country to achieve high life expectancies, fourth in the world, and the lowest infant mortality in the world. The challenge is it has one of the fastest aging populations in Asia, which will translate to a greater demand for specialized elderly care amid rising costs. Imports of medical equipment and supplies to Singapore decreased marginally in 2023 and 2024, from 2022. This could be due in part to the end of the pandemic. U.S. medical equipment and supplies accounted for 24% of market share. On average, more than 70% of products imported into Singapore are subsequently re-exported as Singapore is a transshipment hub. The outlook for 2025 for medical equipment remains robust, driven by a stable economy and strong healthcare infrastructure. In such a resilient and well-supported market, the need for healthcare – and by extension – medical equipment and technologies – will remain constant. 
    
Medical devices are regulated under the Health Products Act and Health Products (Medical Devices) regulations. Singapore’s Health Sciences Authority (HSA) oversees the system of statutory control aimed to safeguard the quality, safety and efficacy of medical devices available in Singapore. Almost all medical devices are regulated. Class A medical devices supplied in a non-sterile state are exempted, however, Class A sterile, Class B, C, and D medical devices are subject to product registration requirements. Classification rules are adopted from the guidance developed by the Global Harmonization Task Force (GHTF). 
Telemedicine services are licensed in Singapore under the Healthcare Services Act 2020 and the Ministry of Health actively monitors compliance. 

ASEAN has been developing a uniform system for registering and assessing medical devices across the ten-member countries. Various ASEAN economies have started the adoption of the ASEAN Medical Device Directive (AMDD). This requires ASEAN countries to adopt uniform classification criteria for medical devices. This bodes well for U.S. medical device manufacturers as they will be able to easily access a common medical device market with a market size of more than 600 million people. Adherence to the basic principles of the AMDD in ASEAN will likely take place over the next few years. To date, fully compliant countries include Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia.  

Singapore Healthcare Market Size, Million USD

*Including healthcare services
Units: $ millions
Source: IHS Markit

Leading Sub-Sectors

Healthcare demand and spending will increase due to an aging population, heavier chronic disease burdens, advances in technology and a more well-informed and perceptive population. Combined with medical facility constraints, Singapore will likely see a rebalance of its healthcare system towards more home-based care. There will be opportunities to introduce telecare initiatives as the healthcare system gradually evolves towards being less hospital-centric and pivoting towards more outpatient care. The advent of telecare, remote patient monitoring will be of strategic importance to pharmaceutical companies as medical professionals will be better able to monitor patients’ adherence to treatment, and as more patients are affected by multiple chronic conditions that require multiple pharmaceutical products. 
  
The Health Ministry’s mandate is to deliver affordable healthcare, ensure good medical outcomes, reduce illness and promote good health, and ensure that the country is resilient against communicable disease threats and civil emergencies. A US$5.6 billion budget has been allocated to address infrastructure concerns in the short and long term, as well as to support healthcare provisions and subsidies for the poor. The three key areas of focus are healthcare infrastructure, healthcare delivery, and managing the associated costs and issues related to an aging population. This budget also includes larger subsidies for surgical implants, the treatment and management of chronic diseases, as well as funding programs to promote healthy lifestyle and active-aging programs.  

For the long term, the Singapore government remains committed to ensuring that the national healthcare system keeps pace with global medical advancements. To keep up with advances in biomedical science and encourage the development of new clinical treatments for Singaporeans, the Ministry of Health, in partnership with A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research) and several other governmental bodies, have invested in clinical and translational research. The aim is to augment Singapore’s medical capabilities in the public healthcare system and position Singapore as the premier regional medical services hub. Singapore has also embarked on an ambitious ten-year study to use genomic data to improve public health. PRECISE which stands for Precision Health Research Singapore, aims to generate 100,000 genomes comprising Singapore’s major ethnic groups and use the results to tailor customized healthcare for the population. This project is touted as Southeast Asia’s most comprehensive consented population study, and the genomes will be analyzed to yield insights into Asia-specific diseases and take a customized approach for preventive care and treatment. 
 
U.S. exporters that provide cutting-edge technology, laboratory and testing equipment, and services for the healthcare and research communities will find Singapore a lucrative market. The elderly (defined as over 65 years) currently represent 10.7% of the total population, the highest among all the other ASEAN countries. Within the next 20 years, Singapore will experience what is known as ‘hyper-aging.’ Over a quarter of the population will be 65 years or older by 2030. As such, more facilities for the elderly, such as nursing homes and rehabilitation centers, need to be built. The demand for services such as geriatric medicine, home-based patient monitoring, memory care, and rehabilitation medicine are expected to rise. U.S. firms specializing in elder-care products and services will find a robust and growing market in Singapore.            

Opportunities

The national healthcare expenditure has recorded increases every year and the demand for healthcare has grown substantially because of population growth and aging. The Singapore National Health Expenditure could increase to US$44 billion in 2030. The Ministry of Health is in the midst of a major revamp of the public sector subsidy structure aimed to better target resources amid an aging population and those with greater need. 
  
Broadly speaking, the opportunities are in health IT solutions that focus on telemedicine, telecare, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and the protection of data contained in electronic health records and data sharing. Others include personal health management, health screening, disease management, preventive care products, access to homecare resources, and advanced technologies that would enable seamless integrated healthcare. 

The Health Ministry has dedicated US$1 billion for the continued development of the Woodlands Health Campus, Singapore General Hospital’s Emergency Medicine Building and Elective Center, as well as IT infrastructure for new healthcare facilities and other major IT projects. This will be carried out between now and 2036 and will strengthen the continuum of care for sub-acute care as well as palliative care. More polyclinics will be built, bringing the total to 32 by 2030. Other infrastructure projects include the redevelopment of Alexandra Hospital, ready by 2030, a new integrated acute and community hospital in the east, National Cancer Centre, the existing Tan Tock Seng Hospital Integrated Care Hub as well as at least eight more nursing homes with more than 1070 beds added. Plans are to double the number of beds to more than 31,000 over the next decade.   
Government hospitals account for 80% of all hospital beds in Singapore while the private sector accounts for 20%. Demand for medical equipment comes from public and private hospitals and clinics. 

The Health Ministry is the largest consumer, accounting for nearly 75% of local demand. Parkway Hospitals Singapore, the largest private-sector healthcare provider in Singapore, is also a significant buyer of medical equipment. More than 80% of local demand is met through imports, and there is a premium placed on American-made products. U.S. manufacturers with innovative products will find Singapore a good marketplace. More than 80% of local demand is met through imports, and there is a premium placed on American-made products. U.S. manufacturers with innovative products will find Singapore a good marketplace.    

Resources

Trade Shows

• International Dental Exhibition and Meeting (IDEM) 2026, Singapore 
  April 17-19, 2026
• HealthTech X Asia, 2026
• May 2026 (To be advised)
• Medical Fair Asia 2026, Singapore
  September 9-11, 2026

Singapore Government Offices 

• Singapore Ministry of Health (MOH)
• MOH Office for Healthcare Transformation (MOHT)
• Synapxe (previously Integrated Health Information System)
• Health Sciences Authority (HSA)
• Health Promotion Board (HPB)
• Agency for Integrated Care (AIC)
• Singapore Economic Development Board (SEDB)
• Agency for Care Effectiveness (ACE)
• Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)
• Precision Health Research, Singapore (PRECISE) 

U.S. Commercial Service, Singapore Contact 
Ms. Luanne Theseira, Commercial Specialist 
Email: Luanne.Theseira@trade.gov