Advancing health equity

Advancing health equity | Daily Tribune

Health is a fundamental human right and a universal value. Improved health results in greater well-being for the people and has ramifications for the survival and development of a country and even the world.

At the 77th World Health Assembly, members adopted the World Health Organization (WHO) Fourteenth General Programme of Work for 2025-2028. The program includes such strategic objectives as improving health service coverage and bolstering financial protections to ensure universal health coverage. WHO has called on all countries to take action on these issues.

Concerning universal health coverage, Taiwan launched the National Health Insurance (NHI) in 1995. The system, which brought together already existing occupational insurance plans, has reached its 30th year and now covers 99.9 percent of the Taiwan population.

The NHI system provides equitable, accessible, and efficient healthcare to all people in Taiwan.

It is an important pillar and guarantor of Taiwan’s social stability as well as the people’s health and safety. It has, moreover, become a global benchmark for achieving universal health coverage. In an annual survey carried out by Numbeo, Taiwan has ranked first in the Health Care Index category for seven consecutive years.

The NHI operates on a pay-as-you-go, self-sustaining model capable of addressing the financial challenges posed by an aging population and rising healthcare costs. By reforming premium rates and adding funding sources, such as the tobacco health and welfare surcharge, the system is on a sound, sustainable footing.

To promote the health of our people, President Lai Ching-te articulated the vision of a healthy Taiwan in 2024. This aims to ensure that the people are healthy, the nation is strong, and the world is more ready to embrace Taiwan.

Remaining focused on people, families, and communities, we are expanding health promotion operations and preventive healthcare. Moreover, we are implementing a family physician plan, offering comprehensive care to patients with chronic diseases, and utilizing telemedicine to improve healthcare accessibility in rural areas.

By promoting integrated long-term care, palliative care, and aging in place, we ensure holistic, lifelong, and dignified care for all people, realizing health equity.

In 2021, WHO released the Global Strategy on Digital Health for 2020-2025.

Under this plan, the global health body is seeking to develop and adopt person-centric digital health solutions to prevent, detect, and respond to infectious diseases. It is also overseeing the development of infrastructure and applications to use health data to promote health and well-being.

Taiwan continues utilizing its information and communications technology prowess to build effective, high-ROI health systems and services. The NHI cloud facilitates the more efficient exchange of medical records, while adopting international standards such as Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources enhances international medical data sharing.

Additionally, the incorporation of AI-assisted technologies is advancing the development of smart healthcare. And the introduction of a virtual health insurance card and the My Health Bank app, which enables real-time management of personal health data, empowers people to make health-enabling choices.

In 2008, Taiwan introduced the Health Technology Assessment to facilitate evidence-based policymaking. It also accelerated the inclusion of new treatments under the NHI system. For example, in 2023, gene and cell therapies were covered for the first time, marking a new era for precision medicine and offering patients enhanced treatment options. Taiwan also continues to leverage innovative technologies to improve the working environment for the medical workforce and to bolster the overall quality of medical service.

What’s more, despite facing political challenges, Taiwan has continuously participated in international health affairs and has been dedicated to supporting the global health system.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Taiwan played a crucial role in sharing supplies, strategies, and experiences, and proved to be a reliable partner of countries worldwide.

Taiwan earnestly hopes to work with the international community to create a future of borderless healthcare that realizes the fundamental human right to health stipulated in the WHO Constitution and the vision of leaving no one behind espoused in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Dr. Chiu Tai-yuan, Minister of Health and Welfare, Republic of China (Taiwan)