In 2018 the National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) requested major medical institutions including regional hospitals and larger to cut the number of outpatient visits by two percent annually. Although the request has been deemed as challenging by hospitals, the coronavirus outbreak has massively reduced the public’s willingness to visit hospitals. Following the conclusion of the Lunar New Year holidays, the number of outpatient visits during Jan. 31 and Feb. 5 dropped 13 percent annually. That resulted in the steepest decline in the number of outpatient visits in the past five years. NHIA Director General Lee Po-chang said that to support ongoing epidemic prevention efforts, authorities on Jan. 23 asked hospitals to halt efforts at cutting outpatient visits with no timetable to resume the policy.
NHIA data show that there was an across-the-board decline in hospital visits, including 13 percent for outpatient departments, 4 percent for emergency rooms and a 19 percent drop the number of inpatient patients.
NHIA Medical Administration Section Director Lee Chuh-fu said that typically, the end of the Lunar New Year holidays usher in a peak in hospital visits due to changing weather and seasonal flu as well as the movement of people returning home to their job en masse. The year, the people’s concerns about the possible community spread of the coronavirus has reversed the trend in hospital visits, which was also observed during the 2003 SARS outbreak.
Shinkong Wu Ho-su Memorial Hospital Vice Superintendent Hung Tzu-jen said that during the SARS outbreak, the drop in the number of hospital visits was even more dramatic at more than 30 percent. Although circumstances were more dire during the SARS epidemic, the situation was mostly concentrated over a three-month period. However, regarding the current coronavirus outbreak, the number confirmed infections is still rising amid lingering risks of community spread. With no end in sight for the fight against the outbreak, the number of hospital visits will likely continue to decline.
[2020-02-18 / United Daily News]
