President William Lai (賴清德) this morning attended a symposium to mark the 30-year anniversary of Taiwan’s world-acclaimed National Health Insurance (NHI) system.
In a forum on NHI sustainability, Lai expressed Taiwan’s deep gratitude to the NHI for safeguarding the health of all citizens.
He also stressed the importance of social health insurance as a social payback system to pool resources for those in need.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Last year, Taiwan’s healthcare index was ranked first in the world for the sixth consecutive year, attracting recognition and praise worldwide, Lai said.
The NHI currently boasts medical coverage of 98 to 99 percent, one of the world’s highest, treating prisoners, military personnel and impoverished families, he added.
From the common cold to organ transplants, cancer treatment to hospice and palliative care, everyone in Taiwan receives the same level of service, he said.
The NHI system also has a public satisfaction rate of more than 90 percent, one of the highest approval rates worldwide, he said.
It has addressed problems across society, including the poverty trap of sick people becoming poor, and poor people becoming sick due to the cost of healthcare, Lai added.
The NHI is a non-partisan system established by forward-thinking leaders such as former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) and then-Department of Health minister Chang Po-ya (張博雅), he said.
However, the NHI faces some challenges, such as a shortage of medical personnel, particularly in the fields of internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, and obstetrics and gynecology, he said, calling for these challenges to be addressed through healthcare reforms to ensure the NHI continues to deliver world-class service.
Taiwan would benefit from more integrated military strategies and deployments if the US and its allies treat the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea as a “single theater of operations,” a Taiwanese military expert said yesterday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said he made the assessment after two Japanese military experts warned of emerging threats from China based on a drill conducted this month by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command. Japan Institute for National Fundamentals researcher Maki Nakagawa said the drill differed from the
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
A rally held by opposition parties yesterday demonstrates that Taiwan is a democratic country, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that if opposition parties really want to fight dictatorship, they should fight it on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) held a protest with the theme “against green communists and dictatorship,” and was joined by the Taiwan People’s Party. Lai said the opposition parties are against what they called the “green communists,” but do not fight against the “Chinese communists,” adding that if they really want to fight dictatorship, they should go to the right place and face
RSS