The Taiwan Alliance of Patients’ Organizations (TAPO), established in 2016, brings together patient groups representing cancer, rare diseases, immune-related conditions, and chronic diseases. As the alliance marks its 10th anniversary, it reflects on a decade of efforts to promote patient participation in healthcare policymaking and advocate for patients’ rights to have an equal voice in decision-making, advancing the vision of patient-centered care.
TAPO President Wu Hung-lai(吳鴻來) recalled that in the early days, patient advocacy groups faced intense resistance when pushing to participate in meetings regarding National Health Insurance (NHI) coverage for new drugs and medical devices. At one point, some representatives even boycotted the meetings, causing them to be adjourned due to a lack of quorum. Despite these challenges, patient organizations continued their advocacy efforts. Since 2017, patient representatives have gradually gained participation opportunities within NHI-related committees. In 2019, they began attending the Pharmaceutical Benefit and Reimbursement Scheme (PBRS) Joint Committee meetings as observers, and by 2025, they secured formal seats on the National Health Insurance Committee (NHIC) and became official members of the PBRS Joint Committee. This marks a major step forward, as patient participation has now been fully institutionalized.
Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) emphasized that truly patient-centered healthcare requires patients to be directly involved in policy development and evaluation. He acknowledged the important role patient groups play in healthcare decision-making and expressed support for increasing patient representation on the NHIC.
Looking ahead, TAPO outlined four key advocacy priorities: enabling earlier patient involvement in policymaking, establishing institutionalized mechanisms for patient representation, advancing the legal protection of patient rights, and developing metrics to assess patient rights. At the same time, the alliance will continue strengthening patient community capacity, fostering cross-disease collaboration, and promoting international engagement to enhance Taiwan’s visibility and influence in patient participation and patient rights advancement.
【2026-05-31/UDN】
