Two insurance companies are considering offering new policies designed for people who need treatment due to serious side effects of COVID-19 vaccines, the Financial Supervisory Commission said.
The insurers plan to offer the products to individuals, but they have not finalized the scope of coverage nor the size of premiums, Insurance Bureau Director-General Shih Chiung-hwa (施瓊華) told a meeting of the legislature’s Finance Committee in Taipei yesterday.
“Once they [the insurers] submit their applications to launch the new products, we will expedite the review process so that the products can be put on the market and become available for consumers faster, if they qualify,” Shih said.
Photo: CNA
She did not identify the insurance companies.
Shih’s remarks came after Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lai Shyh-bao (賴士葆) asked the commission if there are existing insurance policies to help people deal with any adverse reactions to COVID-19 vaccines.
“According to my understanding, no insurance policies would cover the risks,” Lai said, adding that the commission should address the issue, as controversies might arise after more people receive COVID-19 jabs.
The issue would be important, as some countries have delayed the rollout of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine over reports of blood clots, he added.
Lai asked the commission if it was encouraging the public to receive vaccinations, as the planned insurance policies would protect them.
“We think the vaccines recommended by the Ministry of Health and Welfare should not be problematic, but if consumers want the [insurance] products, we would make them available,” commission Chairman Thomas Huang (黃天牧) said.
Taiwanese suppliers to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC, 台積電) are expected to follow the contract chipmaker’s step to invest in the US, but their relocation may be seven to eight years away, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said yesterday. When asked by opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Niu Hsu-ting (牛煦庭) in the legislature about growing concerns that TSMC’s huge investments in the US will prompt its suppliers to follow suit, Kuo said based on the chipmaker’s current limited production volume, it is unlikely to lead its supply chain to go there for now. “Unless TSMC completes its planned six
Power supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) yesterday said second-quarter revenue is expected to surpass the first quarter, which rose 30 percent year-on-year to NT$118.92 billion (US$3.71 billion). Revenue this quarter is likely to grow, as US clients have front-loaded orders ahead of US President Donald Trump’s planned tariffs on Taiwanese goods, Delta chairman Ping Cheng (鄭平) said at an earnings conference in Taipei, referring to the 90-day pause in tariff implementation Trump announced on April 9. While situations in the third and fourth quarters remain unclear, “We will not halt our long-term deployments and do not plan to
‘SHORT TERM’: The local currency would likely remain strong in the near term, driven by anticipated US trade pressure, capital inflows and expectations of a US Fed rate cut The US dollar is expected to fall below NT$30 in the near term, as traders anticipate increased pressure from Washington for Taiwan to allow the New Taiwan dollar to appreciate, Cathay United Bank (國泰世華銀行) chief economist Lin Chi-chao (林啟超) said. Following a sharp drop in the greenback against the NT dollar on Friday, Lin told the Central News Agency that the local currency is likely to remain strong in the short term, driven in part by market psychology surrounding anticipated US policy pressure. On Friday, the US dollar fell NT$0.953, or 3.07 percent, closing at NT$31.064 — its lowest level since Jan.
The New Taiwan dollar and Taiwanese stocks surged on signs that trade tensions between the world’s top two economies might start easing and as US tech earnings boosted the outlook of the nation’s semiconductor exports. The NT dollar strengthened as much as 3.8 percent versus the US dollar to 30.815, the biggest intraday gain since January 2011, closing at NT$31.064. The benchmark TAIEX jumped 2.73 percent to outperform the region’s equity gauges. Outlook for global trade improved after China said it is assessing possible trade talks with the US, providing a boost for the nation’s currency and shares. As the NT dollar
RSS