A subsidy scheme by the Taipei City Government deprives elderly people with disabilities of their right to collect full welfare benefits, two lawmakers said yesterday as they called on the city to rectify the problem.
Taipei has since 2002 offered separate subsidies for elderly people with disabilities, independent Legislator Freddy Lim (林昶佐) and Taipei City Councilor Sabrina Lim (林亮君) told a news conference at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei.
This means that people entering a nursing home can only apply for aid specifically for elderly live-in care, even if they have a record of disability, they said.
Photo: CNA
This is unfair to those with disabilities and their family members, the two added.
According to Ministry of Health and Welfare regulations, a person with disabilities has the right to apply for aid with the responsible local authority after admission into a care facility, regardless of whether it is a long-term care home or any other kind of senior care center, Freddy Lim said.
Other local governments — including New Taipei City and Taoyuan — allow elderly people with disabilities to apply for whatever aid is applicable to their situation, he said.
Taipei’s unfair distinction has caused many residents to move elsewhere to receive the welfare that is rightfully theirs, he added.
Sabrina Lim said that she at the end of last year sent a written request to the Taipei Department of Social Welfare for an explanation.
The department said the budget for disability aid would skyrocket if it changed the policy, making adjustment impossible, she said.
Sabrina Lim said she then turned to the ministry for assistance, which last month instructed the city government to bring its policy in line with central government regulations.
As of December last year, 1,977 people in Taipei had received senior live-in care assistance, Sabrina Lim said.
Among them, 1,295 were also classified as disabled, meaning that the city’s policy has barred them from receiving disability assistance, she added.
Elderly people with disabilities are the “disadvantaged among the disadvantaged,” said Shih Ting-hung (施定宏), head of the Taipei Community Elderly Long-term Care Development Association.
Long-term care places immense financial pressure on seniors and their families, Shih said, adding that a policy change would be a great help to Taipei’s elderly residents.
Fast food chain McDonald's is to raise prices by up to NT$5 on some products at its restaurants across Taiwan, starting on Wednesday next week, the company announced today. The prices of all extra value meals and sharing boxes are to increase by NT$5, while breakfast combos and creamy corn soup would go up by NT$3, the company said in a statement. The price of the main items of those meals, if ordered individually, would remain the same. Meanwhile, the price of a medium-sized lemon iced tea and hot cappuccino would rise by NT$3, extra dipping sauces for chicken nuggets would go up
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) arrived in Taiwan yesterday ahead of upcoming AI and technology events, saying he plans to meet with clients and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) during his visit. After landing at Taipei Songshan Airport, Huang posed for photos with fans and handed out Yakult drinks to reporters and supporters waiting at the scene, saying he has “a lot to do” during the trip. Asked about reports that Nvidia’s planned headquarters site in Taipei’s Beitou Shilin Technology Park could break ground on May 27, Huang said that if the company holds an event, he would
FUKUOKA SITUATION: Japanese media reported that the pathogen is expected to be identified by the summer, while the CDC downplayed the idea that it was hMPV A “mysterious cold-like illness” reported in Japan’s Fukuoka Prefecture does not seem to be a new disease, but Japanese authorities have been asked about the situation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. The Fukuoka Prefectural Medical Association on Wednesday told a news conference that a “mystery cold” that has become a hot topic on social media is “highly likely to be caused by some kind of viral infection,” Japan’s KBC News reported. “Many people are experiencing symptoms starting with a sore throat, followed by a runny nose, phlegm and a severe cough,” KBC News reported, citing association officials. Health authorities are
Carrefour Taiwan is to begin using a new name from the start of July, but it cannot divulge the name until then, the chairman of the supermarket chain's parent company said today. President Chain Store Co chairman Lo Chih-hsien (羅智先) was asked by reporters after a shareholders' meeting to confirm whether the company has settled on a new name for the supermarket brand. In March, the government-registered name of two Carrefour Taiwan branches was quietly changed to "Le Chia Kang" (樂家康) in Chinese, raising speculation that has been selected as the name. Lo said that because of local regulations and contractual obligations, the
RSS