A public petition calling for looser restrictions on the National Health Insurance (NHI)-covered medication for treating inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) reached the 5,000-signature threshold yesterday, prompting Minister of Health and Welfare Chiu Tai-yuan (邱泰源) to pledge a swift review by the NHI Administration.
IBD includes Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, in which the immune system attacks the intestines, causing severe abdominal pain, bloody stools, intestinal narrowing, perforations and even fistulas.
During flare-ups, people with IBD might need to use the bathroom 10 to 20 times a day and are often unable to leave the toilet while awake.
Photo: CNA
IBD commonly affects young adults aged between 20 and 40, many of whom are in school, starting careers or building families, only to find their lives limited by the disease.
NHI-covered treatments for IBD include biological agents and small molecule drugs, but only for a period of one year.
If the condition flares up again, patients must wait for a three-month observation period before they can reapply for medication.
Many patients are forced to stop treatment as their condition is stabilizing, causing relapses that reduce quality of life and increase healthcare expenses, advocacy groups said.
The petition on the National Development Council’s Public Policy Online Participation Platform was initiated by the Taiwan IBD Patient Support Association and the Taiwan Intestinal Health Association.
They advocated for the extension of NHI-covered medication for IBD to two years or more, like other autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis, and for the removal of the mandatory discontinuation and re-evaluation period.
The associations conducted a survey collecting 129 responses in two weeks, 75 from patients themselves.
The results showed that 91.3 percent of patients experienced a relapse after one year, with nearly 40 percent relapsing within three months of stopping medication.
In addition, abdominal pains and bloody stools returned for more than 80 percent of patients, while 70 percent experienced anxiety and depression related to the disease, 60 percent said it affected their work or studies, and nearly 30 percent ended up in hospital or an emergency room.
More than 80 percent of respondents hope to extend the medication coverage period and more than 60 percent called for the removal of the three-month observation period following a relapse.
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