Taiwan approves health insurance subsidies for elderly people — Taipei Times
Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan passed an amendment to the Senior Citizens Welfare Act requiring the central government to fully pay National Health Insurance contributions for some citizens aged 65 and older. According to the Taipei Times, the initiative by lawmakers from the Kuomintang and the Taiwan People’s Party was backed by 60 votes to 39.
Who will be eligible for compensation
Under the adopted changes, the state will cover the full cost of insurance contributions for elderly people whose total net income in the previous year, as determined by tax authorities, does not reach the threshold for filing a tax return or is taxed at a rate below 20%.
Under the progressive income tax scale in force this year, total net income of up to NT$1.38 million, or about US$42,674, is taxed at a rate below 20%. Therefore, people aged 65 and older with annual total net income within these limits will be eligible for the subsidy.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
Cost estimate and government warnings
The Taiwan People’s Party caucus estimated the government’s additional annual expenditure at nearly NT$39 billion. The calculation is based on a monthly subsidy of NT$826 per elderly person.
Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang warned that the change departs from the principle of paying contributions according to ability to pay and could jeopardize the system’s long-term stability. According to him, it could lead to intergenerational inequality, higher insurance contributions, limits on the growth of the health insurance budget, or the reallocation of tax revenues at the expense of other social programs.
People aged 65 and older already make up one-fifth of Taiwan’s population, and this group accounts for more than 42% of National Health Insurance system spending. Representatives of the Democratic Progressive Party also said that the source of funding and the allocation of funds between central and local authorities should be clearly defined before such expenditures are approved.
