Proposed changes to the Rules of Medical Diagnosis and Treatment by Telecommunications (通訊診察治療辦法), which are expected to take effect in April, affecting about 7 million people, would not impact business at health clinics, Minister of Health and Welfare Hsueh Jui-yuan (薛瑞元) said yesterday.
Remote treatment of chronic illnesses is covered by projects that fall under the National Health Insurance (NHI) and would continue to be handled by local clinics, while remote diagnosis and treatment at hospitals would be paid out of pocket, Hsueh said.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare late last year proposed the amendment, which would allow local hospitals and clinics to provide remote services to elderly people and people with chronic illnesses.
Photo: CNA
The amendment drew significant criticism from clinics, who said that its implementation would push most people with chronic conditions to go to hospitals with more funding and resources.
Doctors at clinics have criticized the phrasing of the proposed rules for medication and the long-term care of people with chronic conditions, saying that if they are not clarified, hospitals would also offer such services, which might mean people would go to hospitals rather than clinics.
After discussions with hospitals and clinics, the consensus was that the amendments would put remote diagnosis and treatment for people with chronic conditions under the control of NHI programs, for which local clinics are the go-to treatment centers, Hsueh said yesterday.
People who are covered by such programs, but still want to use remote services provided by hospitals, would not be covered by the NHI, he said.
The NHI is also implementing a project to help upgrade equipment at clinics, primarily their capability to connect to the Health Information System, he said.
How pharmaceutical logistics would work under such a system is being assessed, Hsueh said.
The changes to the regulations would be announced by the middle of this month and could be implemented in April, he added.
Separately, NHI Administration Director Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said that remote diagnoses currently apply to follow-ups within three months after a person has been hospitalized for an acute medical condition, those at long-term healthcare facilities, people cared for by a family doctor, government-approved home-stay patients and international patients.
More categories for remote diagnosis and treatment, including care for people with late-stage acute diseases, chronic diseases and terminal diseases, as well as care for people with physical disabilities or those affected by disasters, infectious diseases or other incidents, are expected to be made available, Shih said.
In related news, the National Health Insurance Administration said yesterday that it would add nine medicines, including six cancer treatments, to the list of prescription drugs covered by the National Health Insurance, starting next month.
The extended coverage would benefit more than 2,000 Taiwanese, saving each person NT$620,000 to NT$3.19 million per year, it said.
The cancer drugs include immunotherapy treatment for recurrent head and neck squamous cell cancer, squamous lung cancer, breast cancer, acute lymphoblastic leukemia and NTRK fusion cancer, agency Deputy Director-General Tsai Shu-ling (蔡淑鈴) said.
The new treatments also include severe beta thalassemia and progressive fibrosing interstitial lung disease drugs, she said.
The International Industrial Talents Education Special (INTENSE) Program to attract foreigners to study and work in Taiwan will provide scholarships and a living allowance of up to NT$440,000 per person for two years beginning in August, Minister of Education Pan Wen-chung (潘文忠) told a meeting of the legislature’s Education and Culture Committee yesterday. Pan was giving an update on the program’s implementation, a review of universities’ efforts to recruit international students and promotion of the Taiwan Huayu Bilingual Exchanges of Selected Talent (BEST) program. Each INTENSE Program student would be awarded a scholarship of up to NT$100,000 per year for up to
BASIC OPERATIONS: About half a dozen navy ships from both countries took part in the days-long exercise based on the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea An unpublicized joint military exercise between Taiwan and the US in the Pacific Ocean last month was carried out in accordance with an international code, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said yesterday. According to a Reuters report citing four unnamed sources, the two nations’ navies last month conducted joint drills in the Western Pacific. The drills were not made public at the time, but “about half-a-dozen navy ships from both sides, including frigates and supply and support vessels, participated in the days-long exercises,” Reuters reported, citing the sources. The drills were designed to practice “basic” operations such as communications, refueling and resupplies,
‘MONEY PIT’: The KMT’s more than NT$2 trillion infrastructure project proposals for eastern Taiwan lack professional input and financial transparency, the DPP said The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus yesterday said it would ask the Executive Yuan to raise a motion to oppose the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus’ infrastructure proposals and prepare to file for a constitutional interpretation if the KMT-dominated legislature forces their passage. The DPP caucus described the three infrastructure plans for transportation links to eastern Taiwan proposed by the KMT as “three money pit projects” that would cost more than NT$2 trillion (US$61.72 billion). It would ask the Executive Yuan to oppose public projects that would drain state financial resources, DPP caucus secretary-general Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said. It would also file for
SELF-SUFFICIENCY: The project would only be the beginning, as Taiwan needs at least 120 satellites to ensure uninterrupted communication, Wu Tsung-tsong said The Taiwan Space Agency (TASA) yesterday said it plans to launch six low Earth orbit satellites starting in 2026 as part of the government’s plan to boost the resilience of the nation’s communications. The development of the technology gained attention after Ukrainians were able to access the Internet through Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) CEO Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite service, despite their infrastructure being severely damaged in the war with Russia. Two of the satellites would be built by the government, while four would involve cooperation between TASA and private contractors. “Over the past 30 years, the satellite technology in Taiwan has