TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan will continue improving long-term care services to help seniors and support family caregivers, President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) said said Tuesday.
Speaking at the National Filial Piety Awards ceremony, Lai said modern filial piety should focus on timely care, dignity, and shared responsibility. He said families, communities, and the government should work together to care for seniors.
CNA reported that the ceremony honored 30 people for their dedication to caring for family members. The recipients ranged in age from 23 to 82 and included two students.
Lai said five people receiving care from this year’s award recipients were at least 100 years old, with the oldest aged 108. He said the examples showed that filial piety can take many forms and often requires years of commitment.
Taiwan now has more than 15,000 long-term care service sites and more than 100,000 care workers, Lai said. He added that Long-term Care 3.0, the government’s next-stage care program, would improve coordination among home care, rehabilitation, dementia care, community services, and respite care.
Lai said a new rental system for smart assistive devices began last month. The system allows families to replace equipment as a senior individual’s condition changes, reducing the cost of buying new devices and helping caregivers respond to changing needs.
Lai said filial piety should include caring for seniors before it is too late, respecting their choices, and sharing caregiving responsibilities. He added that the government would continue expanding support for families and helping people age with dignity.
