Taiwan Quick Take: Drug researchers honored

Research into medications and rare congenital diseases were highlighted in the fifth Medical Technology Research and Development Award ceremony yesterday. The Department of Health and the Ministry of Economic Affairs presented the awards to acknowledge research into genetic illnesses done by individuals, medical personnel and pharmaceutical manufacturers. A prize for personal dedication to congenital diseases was awarded to Tseng Min-chieh (曾敏傑), vice chairman of the Taiwan Foundation for Rare Disorders, and Chao Mei-chin (趙美琴), director of the Kaohsiung Medical University's pediatrics department. "Although the market [for rare disorder medication] is not very big, being able to conduct research and development into drugs for such a specific group of people is worthwhile," Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-hsiang (施顏祥) said. Hu Yo-pu (胡幼圃), a professor at the National Defense Medical Center and one of the judges for the awards, urged the Bureau of National Health Insurance to grant the manufacturers who received the prize "some advantages" as it moves to lower drug prices.