Скачать или смотреть NHI copays to rise for medication and emergency care from July 1

Do you have a habit of going to the hospital when you get the sniffles? Well, you might want to think twice before you do starting this summer. A health insurance copayment adjustment comes into effect on July 1, raising outpatient prescription costs and emergency service fees. In the future, any visit to a hospital emergency room will cost at least NT$1,000, including registration fees. The copay increase is meant to discourage the use of hospitals for minor ailments, according to health officials.

Hsueh Jui-yuan
Health minister
The impact on the health care system’s finances will be minor, roughly NT$3 billion. The main purpose is to see if we can promote a referral system and discourage people from rushing to big hospitals for minor illnesses.

Hung Tzu-jen
Yang Ming Chiao Tung University professor
They initially planned to adjust the copays for diagnostic exams and health testing, but this was not implemented. The increase is only NT$100. So when it comes to regulating the public and discouraging the waste of medical resources, I feel that the effect will be very, very limited.

The scholar says that copays must be adjusted further to curb medical waste. He proposes also raising the copays for tests and examinations. But medical reform groups say that adjusting copays can only go so far. They advocate a multipronged approach that includes more government support for family physicians.