Kathrin Hille: Taiwan to rescue health insurance programme

From the Financial Times:

Taiwan’s government has launched an emergency package to save the island’s health insurance scheme from imminent bankruptcy.

The crisis of the scheme, which is running aground only 10 years after its creation, highlights the difficulties shared by all major industrial economies in finding a way to sustainably finance social security programmes amid ballooning medical expenses and ageing societies.

Taiwan’s national health insurance scheme covers a wide range of medical treatment for all employees. Revenue is collected as 4.5 per cent of monthly salary split among employees, employers and the government.