Reported by Lin Hui-Cin from Taipei

The MOHW set a budget of NT$6.536 billion for this year’s treatment of hepatitis C.  The budget should be sufficient to treat 40,000 patients.  However, the demand has been so high that the budget is estimated to be depleted by the end of July.  After discussion, the NHI Board decided to request an extra budget of NT$1.9 billion for about another 13,000 patients from the MOHW.

As of July 10, 39,000 patients have already received the NHI-reimbursed oral drugs for hepatitis C.  This ring-fenced budget will be depleted by the end of July.  In order to actively implement the government’s disease prevention policy, the NHI Board suggested increasing the budget for hepatitis C treatments by NT$1.9 billion to cover an extra 13,000 patients.  The decision will be submitted to the MOHW for discussion and approval.

In the NHI Board meeting, some members worried that the increase of a finalized budget would cause controversies.  However, some members reckoned that the new drugs are effective and should be widely accessible.  It is not fair if the treatment is only available to some patients, while the others have to wait, said members of the NHI Board.

In order to reach the target of eradicating hepatitis C by 2025, the NHI Board has reached a consensus to request the MOHW to allocate some of its budget for public affairs to hepatitis C treatments.  The shortfall could be covered by the “other budget” under the NHI Global Budget.  The NHI Board is expecting to raise another NT$1.9 billion. This request will be submitted to the MOHW for final approval.

【2019-07-11/ Liberty Times】