The Consumers’ Foundation yesterday called on the government to reassess “opaque” pricing mechanisms for self-paid COVID-19 tests in Taiwan, saying that prices charged by local hospitals are five to 14 times higher than in other nations.
Many countries require foreign visitors to present a report showing a negative test result upon arrival, the foundation said.
It sampled 71 medical agencies across Taiwan and found that more than 60 percent of them charge more than NT$5,000 (US$175.67) per person — the price set for public hospitals managed by the Ministry of Health and Welfare — for a reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction test.
Photo provided by the Consumers’ Foundation
They usually charge NT$4,500 to NT$8,000 per person, with the report delivered in one to three days, the foundation said.
Applicants with more urgent needs have to pay NT$5,500 to NT$7,300, and can get the report the same day, it said.
Those who have to get a report in three or four hours are charged NT$9,600 to NT$10,000, it said.
By comparison, a self-paid test at a regional medical center in Hong Kong costs the equivalent of NT$865 per person, with the report delivered in 24 hours, it said.
At the Hong Kong Adventist Hospital, a test costs NT$5,292 per person, with the report delivered within four hours to one day, it said.
Chan and Hou Medical Laboratories in Hong Kong charges NT$2,911 per person for a report delivered within 24 hours, and NT$3,639 for a report delivered the same day, the foundation said.
Two medical agencies in Macau charge charge only NT$320 per person for a report delivered in 12 to 24 hours, it said.
The data showed that prices in Taiwan are on average 5.15 times higher than in Hong Kong’s regional centers and 14 times higher than in Macau, while the results take longer, it said.
The average price is 1.24 times higher than in Japan, even though Japan’s GDP is 1.55 times greater than Taiwan’s, it said.
During the Lunar New Year holiday last month, 2,565 people who were traveling abroad paid a combined NT$12.82 million for tests, it said, asking whether tests are quarantine requirements or have become a source of profit for local hospitals.
Health authorities should make the review process for prices at medical agencies more transparent, the foundation said.
It would be hard to prevent backroom deals if the government cannot explain to the public the cost structure of the tests, it said, urging the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) and local health authorities to review the pricing mechanisms and publish the information.
According to CECC policy, people who need to provide a self-paid test for travel purposes should fulfill certain conditions, such as having to work or study abroad, or visit relatives abroad in an emergency.
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are
South Korea is planning to revise its controversial electronic arrival card, a step Taiwanese officials said prompted them to hold off on planned retaliatory measures, a South Korean media report said yesterday. A Yonhap News Agency report said that the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs is planning to remove the “previous departure place” and “next destination” fields from its e-arrival card system. The plan, reached after interagency consultations, is under review and aims to simplify entry procedures and align the electronic form with the paper version, a South Korean ministry official said. The fields — which appeared only on the electronic form
RSS