Pharmaceutical News
National Health Insurance premium rate to be raised to 5.17 percent in 2021, employees facing additional monthly payments of NT$63 on average
2020/12/31

Minster of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung announced on Dec. 31 that the 2021 National Health Insurance (NHI) premium rate will increase from the current 4.69 percent to 5.17 percent. The supplementary premium rate will be also be raised from 1.91 percent to 2.11 percent. Employees on average will pay NT$63 more, with a majority 70 percent subjects to additional monthly payments of just under NT$70.

 

According to 2021 NHI payroll bracket table, an office worker in the payroll bracket of NT$42,000 will have to pay about NT$60 more per month as a single person, and NT$242 more per month for a family of four.

 

With NHI finances set to exceed NT$77.1 billion in the red by the end of 2021, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) said that following the 2021 premium increase, no further increases will be required until 2022.

 

Minister Chen said that the government assessed two proposals on adjusting the NHI premium rate by the National Health Insurance Committee and concluded that excessive increases to the rate would cause undue impacts to disadvantaged groups. In order to strike a balance, the MOHW decided to return the NHI premium to 2013 levels at 5.17 percent, prior to the implementation of the second-generation NHI. The supplementary premium rate has also been raised to 2.11 percent. The rates are subject to change according to the pace of economic recovery.

 

Minister Chen explained that after the adjustment, the estimated 1.26 million people (such as low-income households) who are already being subsidized by the government will not see changes to their monthly premium payments. As for employees, those in the salary brackets of NT$24,000, NT$30,000, NT$70,000 and NT$180,000 are projected to pay a respective NT$34, NT$44, NT$105 and NT$262 each month.

 

It has been nearly 10 years since the last premium rate adjustment. The previous adjustment was implemented in 2016, which lowered the rate from 5.17 percent to 4.69 percent, while the supplementary premium was lowered from 2 percent to 1.91 percent and the rates have remained unchanged until 2020. However, since the rate decreases, NHI finances have ended in the red since 2017 while recording ever larger cumulative shortfalls. If the rates are not adjusted, the NHI safety reserve could face depletion at the end of 2021.  

 

[2020-12-31/Central News Agency]