More than 60 percent of Taiwanese would like to pay their medical bills with a credit or debit card, a poll by the Global Views Survey Research Center showed yesterday.
The survey showed that 60.3 percent of respondents thought that paying medical bills using a card should be allowed, and 73 percent said they would like to pay using a card for medical bills that are above NT$1,000, with the support rate rising to 80 percent for those with a university education or higher.
The survey was conducted through a random sampling and computer-assisted telephone interviews, which gathered opinions from 1,071 people above 25 years old from July 31 to Aug. 5.
Payment method should be considered a part of medical service, and given its convenience, payment via credit or debit cards has become a common choice of payment by most people, the center said, although only 10.1 percent of respondents said they had paid medical bills using a card.
The center said that 73.8 percent of medical centers and local hospitals accept payment by credit or debit card, but some of them have set a minimum amount for allowing payment by card, or do not voluntarily inform patients or family members that they accept cards.
The survey also showed that 78.3 percent of respondents thought that the medical facilities should indicate that card payments are accepted by posting clear signs or placing card readers in easy-to-spot areas.
Discounting the percentage of people who did not answer or said they would not consider paying by card, the overall acceptance rate of paying medical bills by cards was 94 percent, the center said.
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