In Parliament: More healthcare and housing assistance soon to be given to lower-income families under ComLink+

SINGAPORE: Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Social and Family Development Eric Chua said on Monday (Mar 10) that more assistance will be extended in the coming months to lower-income families on the ComLink+ scheme, particularly for health and housing.

Later this year, the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) will be launching a new model of support for them. The goal of ComLink+ is to uplift lower-income families with children and bring them “stability, self-reliance and social mobility (3S),” the MSF website says. Almost 1,600 families signed up for support under the program.

“We are weaving health and social support together. Being healthy enables us to live, work and pursue our aspirations,” Mr Chua said in Parliament, adding that it may be a challenge for these families, as they strive to make ends meet, to keep track of medical appointments. They may also need help with identifying healthcare services relevant to their needs.

The new program will offer family coaches to especially help households signed up with ComLink+ to adopt better diets, physical activity, and regular health checks. Moreover, families with members who have a health condition, such as asthma, would have programs tailored to help them ensure these members stay healthy.

“We hope to improve families’ overall health such that they can better pursue their other life goals. We will use insights from the trial to support more families in due course,” CNA quoted Mr Chua.

In addition to helping families manage their health concerns, the new programme will also aid ComLink+ families in public rental housing by taking the steps toward acquiring their own homes through working together with the Housing and Development Board.

By planning the necessary financial steps for ComLink+ families to own a home, officers from HDB and a coach will help the families with an action plan toward homeownership.

The ComLink+ programme was introduced two years ago as part of an initiative toward social mobility. It employs family coaches who are there to give advice and guide households so they can meet their goals. Since then, there have been around 10,000 families in public rental flats under ComLink+.

A year ago, the scheme was extended to low-income families not living in public rental housing as long as they are deemed eligible, such as those whose children are at risk of long-term absenteeism from school. More about ComLink+ can be found here. /TISG

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