Eligible residents aged 65 and older will have their monthly premiums covered by the central government.
Taiwan has passed the an amendment to Article 22 of the Senior Citizens Welfare Act, requiring the central government to fully subsidise National Health Insurance (NHI) premiums for eligible elderly residents.
The proposal, introduced jointly by opposition lawmakers from the Kuomintang (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), passed by a vote of 60 to 39, six weeks ahead of Taiwan’s local elections, as reported by Focus Taiwan.
Under the amended law, the central government will cover the full monthly NHI premium of $25.42 (NT$826) for individuals aged 65 and older whose net consolidated annual income falls below the tax filing threshold or is taxed at a rate under 20 per cent.
Based on current progressive income tax brackets, senior citizens with an annual net income of $42,462 (NT$1.38m) or less will qualify for the subsidy.
The TPP caucus stated that the policy fulfils a campaign pledge made by founding chairman Ko Wen-je during his 2024 presidential campaign. The party noted that whilst several municipal governments previously introduced similar subsidies, local fiscal constraints had prevented uniform implementation across all cities and counties.
The TPP estimates the policy will require approximately $1.2b (NT$39b) in annual central government funding.
Health Minister Shih Chung-liang expressed concern regarding the fiscal impact and structural implications of the legislation, warning that it departs from the NHI system’s principle of contributions based on financial capacity.
Shih noted that residents aged 65 and older currently account for more than 42 per cent of total NHI expenditure, whilst annual funding for long-term care services has grown from under $153.8m (NT$5b) in 2015 to over $3.4b (NT$110b).
He cautioned that shifting the funding burden could create intergenerational disparities, constrain growth in the healthcare budget, and affect government allocations for other social welfare programmes.
($1 = NT$32.5)