In brief
On 7 August 2026, the Ministry of Health (MOH) launched a public consultation to seek views on a proposed Bill to strengthen safeguards on the use of genetic information. The Bill is expected to be tabled in Parliament in 2027. This is in line with MOH’s intention to enhance legislative protections on the use of genetic information. Further information on MOH’s previous statements may be found in our client alert here.
In more detail
To bring the benefits of genetic testing to more Singaporeans, MOH is establishing national programmes to improve access for specific genetic tests, where there are clear and proven interventions, which will enable individuals to modify their risk. The first such programme is the National Familial Hypercholesterolaemia Genetic Testing Programme launched in June 2025. We covered MOH’s broader plans for Singapore’s healthcare sector in our previous client alert here.
MOH has recognised that individuals may hesitate to undergo genetic testing due to concerns about how their results could be used outside healthcare settings, such as in insurance underwriting and employment decisions. In MOH's view, such fears discourage people from getting tested even where it would benefit their health, and confidence that genetic information will be appropriately protected is necessary to scale genetic testing and realise its full benefits.
As such, MOH is proposing to introduce stronger legal protections through the proposed Bill, which will set out clear rules on the use of genetic information in non-clinical settings, starting with insurance and employment. This builds on the current MOH-Life Insurance Association Moratorium on Genetic Testing and Insurance which seeks to protect genetic test results from use in insurance underwriting.
Broadly, the proposed Bill will prevent insurers and employers from requiring genetic testing and requesting or using genetic information in insurance and employment decisions. Notably, these protections will extend beyond genetic information obtained under national programmes, to cover all genetic information, including that derived from commercially available genetic tests
The public consultation on the proposed Bill will run from 7 August 2026 to 4 September 2026.
Key takeaways
Employers and insurers should monitor developments closely as the proposed Bill would significantly limit the use of genetic information in employment and insurance-related decision-making, subject to limited exceptions. The proposed Bill would extend protections to genetic information obtained from all sources, including commercially available genetic tests, and would apply across all stages of employment and insurance underwriting. This may see an increase of individuals being willing to undergo genetic testing if the proposed safeguards are implemented, as the Bill seeks to prevent genetic information from being used against them outside healthcare settings.
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