The nation still lacks a proper national plan for the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, the Taiwan Alzheimer’s Disease Association (TADA) said yesterday.
The association said the number of people in the nation with the disease has risen to about 200,000 this year and could reach 720,000 by 2056.
In advance of the 28th International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease, which is scheduled to be held in Taipei from April 18 through April 20, the association launched a petition urging the government to list the disease as a national health issue and to take its “Taiwan Dementia Plan” — a national strategy proposal addressing Alzheimer’s disease and its effects researched and recommended by TADA — seriously.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Association secretary-general Tang Li-yu (湯麗玉) said that as the country rapidly ages and the number of people with Alzheimer’s grows, it is estimated that there could be four Taiwanese in every hundred suffering dementia by 2056.
“The South Korean government recently started to address this problem, but we still don’t see any concrete progress from our own government,” Tang said.
TADA’s Taiwan Dementia Plan sets out some major goals concerning the four dimensions of prevention, treatment, care and protection, emphasizing the importance of a coordinated approach and an overhaul of current policy.
Five lawmakers from the two major parties were also present to sign the petition, and commented on the dire situation sufferers of the disease and the nation as a whole are facing.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Chieh-ju (陳節如) said daycare centers for the elderly are not specialized enough to separate those with dementia from those with other problems, and the necessary funding from the central government for the establishment of specialized care centers is lacking.
More government campaigns to raise public awareness of the disease, its effects and possible treatments or methods of prevention are needed, DPP Legislator Yu Mei-nu (尤美女) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Yang Yu-hsin (楊玉欣) said.
Fu Chung-ling (傅中玲), a neurologist at Taipei Veterans General Hospital, said that possibly due to a lack of awareness, only about 30,000 people, out of the estimated 200,000 suffering dementia, have the government-issued handbook for people with disabilities.
DPP legislators Liu Chien-kuo (劉建國) and Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) said the government has been merely focusing, with little success, on the aspect of care for people with the disease, while what it should be doing is expanding its coverage to incorporate all four dimensions of the disease and set up a cross-ministry group to address the issue and address the impending Alzheimer’s crisis.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
RSS