There must be a health agenda that looks specifically at women’s health: Health Minister Ong Ye Kung

For 66 years, Her World has celebrated the women shaping Singapore. This year, the magazine turned its focus to health and wellness. So it was only fitting that our Women of the Year 2026 gala welcomed Mr Ong Ye Kung, Minister for Health and Coordinating Minister for Social Policies, as our Guest-of-Honour.

During his speech, Mr Ong described 2026 as “my year of the women”. A fortune he received from a temple at the start of the year, he shared, foretold that his work will involve doing something for women this year. It proved fitting: in the months that followed, women’s health moved to the centre of his work, from providing support for women at high risk of breast cancer at a policy level to a global role championing women’s health.

At the heart of it all is a simple belief: women’s bodies are different, and Singapore’s health system must care for them that way.

When prevention wasn’t covered

For some time, Mr Ong had questioned the ministry: Why is it that a preventive mastectomy for a woman at risk of having breast cancer isn’t insurance-claimable?

His staff explained that insurance covered only curative procedures. That did not sit right with him. “If a woman has BRCA1 or 2 (BReast CAncer gene 1 and BReast CAncer gene 2) genetic variations, she’s very likely to have cancer, and she will still have to go through a mastectomy,” he said.

As announced in this year’s Budget 2026, a woman’s GP assesses she is at high risk of breast cancer based on family history. If she is, she will receive a subsidy for a genetic test to detect variants such as BRCA1 and BRCA2.

If the test confirms the risk, preventive measures, including mastectomy, are supported. “And you can claim insurance (MediShield Life),” Mr Ong said.

Stronger bones, stronger muscles

“I would say we shouldn’t stop there,” he added. “Beyond this, I think we should really look at sarcopenia and osteoporosis.” All of which, women are much more susceptible to both conditions, especially after they go through menopause.

The plan is to use Healthier SG to make bone density and muscle tests more accessible to women, “and then provide the resources to help women build up muscles, strengthen their bones”. 

The plans that he has, in this case, are under works and the initiatives will be announced “hopefully soon”, said Mr Ong.

With a large focus on women’s health this year, Minister Ong Ye Kung was also recently appointed the role of co-chairperson of the Board of the World Economic Forum’s Global Alliance for Women’s Health, alongside Spain’s health minister.

“Professionally, I thought that is a very meaningful platform to contribute,” he said. The alliance recently held its first meeting in New York. “I think they are looking towards Singapore to provide some thought leadership on women’s health.”

Why the work must continue

Mr Ong closed with an argument for why women’s health, and evenings like this one, still matter.

“So long as society’s expectations of women’s roles continue to be different from that of men, governments around the world must continue to build up systems, structures, networks to support women juggling their various roles.” That means eldercare, childcare, understanding employers and supportive policies.

And as long as both hold true, “there will continue to be a role for events like this one, where we honour the achievements of women, so that young girls, looking at the Women of the Year, will be inspired by what is possible as they grow up”.

The Her World Women Of The Year 2026 gala dinner was organised with support from our official e-commerce partner Shopee, official network partner Singtel, and official beauty partner Cle De Peau Beaute.