The Ministry of Health and Welfare’s National Health Insurance Administration hosted the APEC Workshop on Advancing Health Technology Assessment for Sustainable Universal Health Coverage Sept. 3 in Taipei City to discuss the building of stable health ecosystems.
In addition to representatives from 12 other members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, the NHIA invited experts from the U.K.’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to deliver talks. Officials from the Ministry of Health and Wellness of Taiwan’s Caribbean ally Belize were also in attendance to discuss how medical services could be enhanced through the adoption of health technology assessment.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, MOHW Minister Chiu Tai-yuan noted that the application of health technology assessment could clarify whether new drugs, special medical materials and innovative services are beneficial to citizens.
The NHIA said that Taiwan’s Center for Health Policy and Technology Assessment was launched Jan. 1 this year to expedite the incorporation of new medicine into the national health insurance system, while also serving as a bridge for exchange with global counterparts.
According to the NHIA, the workshop focused on the role of health technology assessment in facilitating universal health coverage, stories of the methodology’s impact and ways to advance it despite challenges.
The NHIA arranged for the seminar’s attendees to visit the Taipei-based Center for Drug Evaluation and the Taoyuan City-based Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital Sept. 4 to gain insight into Taiwan’s achievements in health technology assessment. (POC-E)
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