Chunghwa Post next week is to publish a list of underused premises in the six special municipalities that are to be used as long-term care service centers by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the company said yesterday.
It is also to roll out long-term care insurance that would be available to older people in the final quarter of this year, the company added.
The plan to convert underused facilities into nursing homes is part of a campaign Chunghwa Post launched in August last year with the Ministry of Transportation and Communications to meet the challenges posed by the nation’s transition into a superannuated society.
Minister of Transportation and Communications Hochen Tan (賀陳旦) last year asked Chunghwa Post to supply a tally of underused post offices and draw up plans to convert them into nursing homes by partnering with private companies.
A preliminary review of its facilities showed that the company would be able to free up one facility in each of the six special municipalities: Nangang Post Office in Taipei to be overseen by Keelung Hospital; Wugu Post Office in New Taipei City to be overseen by Taipei Hospital; Lujhu Post Office in Taoyuan to be overseen by Taoyuan Hospital; Wujih Post Office in Taichung to be overseen by Taichung Hospital; Yuandian Post Office in Tainan to be overseen by Tainan Hospital; and Fongshan Post Office in Kaohsiung to be overseen by the Cishan Hospital.
The aforementioned branch offices would become “long-term care service boarding facilities,” and could each provide 70 to 100 beds, Chunghwa Post said.
Hochen believes that the company, with more than 1,300 branches nationwide, could add more of its buildings to the list, Chunghwa Post chief secretary Chien Liang-lin (簡良璘) said, adding that the company would continue to assess the possibility of converting more offices.
This list would not be finalized until next week, and the company is still deliberating whether to just lease its premises at a preferential price or also become involved in long-term care services, Chien said.
The long-term care insurance would be a low-premium, high-compensation insurance plan and would pay out according to the conditions of the insured person, the company said.
For instance, older people who have limited mobility or cannot take care of themselves would be eligible for compensation either in a lump sum or a monthly payment, it said.
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