The government should cover one year of National Health Insurance (NHI) premiums for homemakers who are not considered dependents, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators yesterday said, citing inflation, rising commodity prices and a planned increase in NHI premiums this year.
A special budget plan to distribute a tax surplus from last year proposed by the Executive Yuan on Thursday would not allocate funds to the National Pension Fund, under which many homemakers are insured, Legislative Yuan Financial Committee Convener Chung Chia-pin (鍾佳濱) told a news conference at the legislature in Taipei.
However, about 1.24 million women are not listed as dependents and jointly bear the financial burden of their household, Chung said, urging the government to transfer NT$16 billion (US$526.5 million) from the NT$380 billion in surplus taxes to the Ministry of Health and Welfare to cover one year of NHI premiums for these women.
Photo: Liu Hsin-te, Taipei Times
DPP Legislator Lai Hui-yuan (賴惠員) said that the pension fund was established to care for those ineligible for the military, as well as civil servants, educators and labor insurance programs, many of whom are in financially disadvantaged groups.
While those considered financially disadvantaged — about 150,000 people — would not see a change in NHI premium rates, the government should use the tax surplus to cover one year of NHI premiums for these individuals, DPP Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) said.
The government has paid NHI premiums for financially disadvantaged people before, and if the ministry can cover the premiums for the year, it would reduce the burden on these people, DPP Legislator Chuang Ching-cheng (莊競程) said.
Citing inflation and rising retail prices, DPP Legislator Huang Shiou-fang (黃秀芳) said many homemakers are not financially independent, which creates a more financially stressful situation for them.
Homemakers are the “invisible” growers of household economies, and the government’s decision to issue cash handouts as a method to distribute tax surplus money should include these individuals, DPP Legislator Tang Hui-jane (湯蕙禎) said.
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