National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) Director-General Lee Po-chang (李伯璋) yesterday sought to defuse tensions arising from an agency official’s perceived criticism of a National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) medical team’s waiving of surgical fees for a woman who experienced birth complications.
NTUH obstetrician Shih Jin-chung (施景中) on Monday said on Facebook that his team helped the woman who had placenta accreta, a life-threatening condition that poses a major risk of severe vaginal bleeding after delivery, give birth safely.
The surgical procedure for the condition includes a synthetic hemostatic agent that costs about NT$20,000, he said, adding that the woman was not charged for the procedure because she could not afford it.
On Tuesday, NHIA Medical Affairs Division official Chen Chen-hui (陳真慧) said that the hospital could have waived the charges without losing money by applying to have the agency cover the cost of the surgery.
Chen added that there are other NHI-covered hemostatic agents that Shih could have used in surgery, so “if they had followed normal procedures, the hospital or the doctor would not have to cover the expense themselves.”
Chen’s comment triggered criticism from other doctors, such as Kaohsiung Municipal United Hospital’s Division of Urology attending physician Tsai Hsiu-nan (蔡秀男), who said on Facebook that the agency is a “cold-hearted bureaucracy that is unable to hear the voices of doctors and patients.”
Some healthcare practitioners also criticized the agency’s diagnosis-related group payment system.
Lee said his agency would strive to promote communication with physicians to avoid the perception that it is “cold-hearted.”
“Some healthcare practitioners might think the NHIA is out of touch, but I personally have been a surgeon for 37 years and I truly know the pressure a surgeon faces, so we will face these issues pragmatically,” he said.
Lee said he had contacted Shih, who is abroad, by phone and would further discuss the issue with him after he returns to Taiwan.
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