President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday announced a goal to reduce mortality rates from illnesses from the “three highs” — high blood pressure, blood sugar and blood cholesterol levels — by 33 percent in five years.
He made the remark at the third meeting of the Healthy Taiwan Promotion Committee, saying that seven out of 10 leading causes of deaths in the nation are linked to the “three highs.”
Treatment for chronic disorders associated with the “three highs” cost the nation about NT$170 billion (US$5.18 billion) every year, which is straining the National Health Insurance’s (NHI) sustainability, he said.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
According to the WHO, tobacco use, physical inactivity, unhealthy diet and harmful alcohol use are risk factors contributing to noncommunicable diseases, Lai said.
The latest Nutrition and Health Survey in Taiwan showed that the average Taiwanese had moderate or inadequate exercise, ate an unhealthy diet and engaged in harmful alcohol use, he said.
The survey indicated that diet was a cause for concern, as the average Taiwanese diet consisted of highly imbalanced nutrition, including excessive sugar and salt, and inadequate amounts of fruits, vegetables and milk, Lai said.
The most pressing health issues affecting Taiwanese are best addressed pre-emptively by encouraging the public to eat better and be more physically active, he added.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare also lowered the minimum age to qualify for adult preventive medical care to 30 starting this year, Lai said.
The “888 program,” which would identify people with the “three highs” and give them pre-emptive care, is being prepared, Lai added.
Under the program, the government and the private sector would work together in reducing deaths and function loss due to chronic illnesses at the workplace, in communities, on campuses, and in the civil and military service, he said.
In other news, the ministry has been stockpiling flu vaccines and implementing preventive measures in response to complaints about congested hospitals, Lai said.
Central and local government officials are working together to increase hospitals’ ability to share beds and to enforce the hierarchy of medical services to prevent waste, he said.
The Cabinet has been instructed to continue policies that encourage hospitals to increase medium and long-term care staff, increase capacity for critical care and allow outpatient medical services, Lai said.
The agenda for the previous year’s Healthy Taiwan Promotion Committee meeting of reducing cancer deaths by one-third by 2030 is being implemented, he said, adding that NHI coverage for cancer screening was broadened to include more age groups and cancer types.
More funds were also allocated for cancer-related research, such as genetic screening and targeted therapy, Lai said.
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