Healthcare in Taiwan

The following is a re-posting of the article "Healthcare in Taiwan" by the Formosa Post.  I'll have some of my own comments on this underneath the video.

Healthcare in Taiwan is one of the most highly efficient health care systems in the world. Every citizen in Taiwan is fully covered and there is no such thing as pre-existing health condition. If you are an American living in the United States, you probably would know how wonderful the healthcare in Taiwan sounds, because in Taiwan, no matter you have a decent job or are jobless, you are always covered by so called “Universal Health Care”. It’s truly universal. Everyone is in and no one is out. The rate you pay might be slightly different but the monthly premium is really affordable, for most citizens, they pay less than US$50 per month and they have every right to access the health care system in Taiwan.

Health Care is a human right. When you lose your job, no matter if you quit or get laid off, you don’t want to lose the right to see a doctor. Especially when you are really sick, you seriously don’t want to worry that if the visiting to the hospital would cost you a fortune. Life is so precious and you don’t want to choose between your life and the ridiculous medical bill.

The other good thing about health care in Taiwan is you don’t need to see your primary physician and ask him to refer you to some specialists. The process may take a while if you always have to see your primary doctor first. All you need to do is present your health card to ANY of the clinics or hospitals. It’s that simply. Healthcare in Taiwan is such a success and so affordable. Even some tourists go to Taiwan to see some specialists. Yes, tourists can pay cash to see the doctors when they are sick or the specialists for some plastic surgery or Botox injection. Paying cash is a little bit higher than paying by presenting your health card, which fees will be deduced from your bank account. I heard that tourists from Canada or China take advantage of (not sure if I should use the word “abuse”) the health care in Taiwan.



There's been a lot of talk lately about Obamacare and how unpopular it is.  The last I read, it had a disapproval rating of something like 53%.  Conservatives like to run with that number and say "See!  Nobody wants Obamacare!"

However, what the GOP fails to mention is that, 16% out of that 54% dislike Obamacare because it's simply "not liberal enough" or they want "single payer" insurance, which is exactly what Taiwan has.  So the majority of the people here either want Obamacare or universal healthcare.  The numbers just aren't on the side of the GOP/Tea Party, regardless of the insane ramblings of Ted Cruz.

Critics will say that in Taiwan the lines are long to see a doctor, or that there aren't enough doctors.  Maybe that's true, maybe not.  I can tell you from my experience that sometimes I did have to wait, one time as long as three hours.  But who has never waited in a US emergency room for at least that long?  Taiwanese people like to run to the doctor for simple problems like the common cold, and maybe that's an issue that should be addressed.  Is simple, over-the-counter medication that hard to come by that people can't just treat themselves?  Perhaps Taiwan should consider charging some sort of penalty for people who go to the doctor to treat a runny nose.  But the positives FAR outweigh the negatives.  I've told this story a few times before, but I don't mind repeating it again:  When I lived in Taiwan, my daughter needed to stay in the hospital for a week.  At the end of our stay, we were presented with a bill for about US $6.00.  Yes, SIX DOLLARS.  The same hospital visit in the US could easily bankrupt a person without insurance, but in Taiwan it costs about as much as a meal at McDonalds.  Unbelievable.

Obamacare isn't perfect.  It may even totally suck for some people.  I have yet to figure out if it's even cheaper then what I'm paying right now for my private insurance (which is $184 a month).  The website (healthcare.gov) is so damn awful, I don't even understand if the figures they are quoting me are for 1 person or for 3 people.  But I think Obamacare is a step in the right direction and in the end, it may lead to single payer.  Our country can benefit a lot by following Taiwan's model for healthcare.  I hope we do it soon.