TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) attended an international conference on traditional Chinese medicine in New Taipei on Sunday.
He said his administration continues to value the contribution of TCM practitioners. Furthermore, he pledged continued inclusion and integration of TCM in health promotion and care services in his administration's Long-Term Care 3.0 program, per a press release.
Lai thanked doctors for their dedication to protecting public health. He said Taiwan has continually improved its healthcare system and hopes to continue working closely with this community to safeguard the nation’s health.
Lai later recounted that major health care policies, such as the launch of Long-Term Care 1.0 during former President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration. At that time, the program had more than 700 service centers nationwide with an annual budget of about NT$5 billion (US$157 million).
During former President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration, Long-Term Care 2.0 expanded to more than 15,000 service centers and over 100,000 long-term care workers, with an annual budget of approximately NT$90 billion.
Lai said that under his administration, the budget for Long-Term Care 3.0 exceeds NT$110 billion. The program further expands service centers and services such as health promotion, hospice, and institutional care, reducing the burden on family caregivers.
Addressing the National Health Insurance system, Lai said it has contributed significantly to public health and social stability over the past 30 years. The system currently covers 99.9% of the population and has a 92% satisfaction rate.
However, Lai said the nation's health care system has created challenges such as workforce imbalances. To address this issue, the government has increased the overall NHI budget by an estimated 5.5%.
According to Lai, last year’s NHI budget was about NT$928.6 billion, including NT$18.1 billion in public funding. This year, the budget has risen to NT$988.3 billion, with public funding increasing to NT$19.9 billion.
Lai said the government’s main goal in expanding NHI resources is to stabilize medical institutions, improve treatment quality, and ensure reasonable payments for complex and highly specialized medical procedures. He called on the TCM community to continue its cooperation with the government to improve the nation’s health.
Following his speech, Lai presented awards recognizing achievements in lifetime service, medical contributions, academic research, and rural healthcare within the TCM field.
