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China Times, Zhang Cuifen/Taipei Report, 2009.04.25
The Central Health Insurance Bureau announced the top 20 outpatient diseases on the 24th, with dialysis, dental care, colds, hypertension, and diabetes ranking as the top five. These conditions cost over 130 billion yuan annually, accounting for nearly one-third of the total health insurance expenditure. For the first time, dialysis surpassed dental diseases, topping the list with outpatient costs of 33.8 billion yuan, making Taiwan a veritable "Dialysis Kingdom."
According to the Health Insurance Bureau's statistics, the top 20 outpatient diseases last year were, in order: dialysis, dental-related diseases, acute upper respiratory infections, hypertension (without complications), diabetes (without complications), herniated discs or lower back pain, diabetes with complications, hypertension with complications, muscle and soft tissue disorders, coronary heart disease, upper respiratory diseases, contusions and trauma, affective psychosis, acute bronchitis, degenerative arthritis, breast cancer, allergies, sprains and strains, schizophrenia, and cataracts.
Aggregating the related disease categories, dialysis was the most costly, with 33.8 billion yuan spent on outpatient dialysis last year, an 8.71% increase from the previous year. Dental care followed at 33.7 billion yuan, respiratory and cold-related illnesses at 29 billion yuan, hypertension at 19.2 billion yuan, and diabetes at 15.3 billion yuan.
Deputy General Manager Li Chenghua of the Health Insurance Bureau noted that dental-related diseases had long been the top-ranking condition, but this year, chronic kidney disease became the leading illness for the first time. The main reasons are Taiwan's advanced dialysis technology, longer patient survival rates, an aging population, and the continuous growth of the dialysis population, driving up costs.
Taiwan's dialysis population has grown steadily, increasing from 56,090 in 2007 to 58,726 last year. Each dialysis patient undergoes treatment three times a week, costing approximately 600,000 yuan annually.
Due to the substantial business opportunities in dialysis, Teng Xihua, spokesperson for the National Health Insurance Supervision Alliance, suggested that patients seek multiple medical opinions before starting dialysis. For example, Hong Kong strongly encourages peritoneal dialysis, while Taiwan still predominantly uses hemodialysis. The medical community should also review whether some patients are starting dialysis prematurely.
Additionally, the growth rates for outpatient visits for chronic diseases such as breast cancer, hypertension, and diabetes have risen rapidly.
Li Chenghua stated that the outpatient cost growth rate for breast cancer patients reached 14%, the highest among the top 20 diseases, indicating a concerning trend of breast cancer affecting younger populations.
Source: http://health. chinatimes. com/ contents. aspx? cid=5,63& id=5865
Kidney Dialysis Tops Outpatient Visits, Surpassing Dental Care for the First Time
The Central Health Insurance Bureau announced the top 20 outpatient diseases on the 24th, with dialysis, dental care, colds, hypertension, and diabetes ranking as the top five. These conditions cost over 130 billion yuan annually, accounting for nearly one-third of the total health insurance expenditure. For the first time, dialysis surpassed dental diseases, topping the list with outpatient costs of 33.8 billion yuan, making Taiwan a veritable "Dialysis Kingdom."
According to the Health Insurance Bureau's statistics, the top 20 outpatient diseases last year were, in order: dialysis, dental-related diseases, acute upper respiratory infections, hypertension (without complications), diabetes (without complications), herniated discs or lower back pain, diabetes with complications, hypertension with complications, muscle and soft tissue disorders, coronary heart disease, upper respiratory diseases, contusions and trauma, affective psychosis, acute bronchitis, degenerative arthritis, breast cancer, allergies, sprains and strains, schizophrenia, and cataracts.
Aggregating the related disease categories, dialysis was the most costly, with 33.8 billion yuan spent on outpatient dialysis last year, an 8.71% increase from the previous year. Dental care followed at 33.7 billion yuan, respiratory and cold-related illnesses at 29 billion yuan, hypertension at 19.2 billion yuan, and diabetes at 15.3 billion yuan.
Deputy General Manager Li Chenghua of the Health Insurance Bureau noted that dental-related diseases had long been the top-ranking condition, but this year, chronic kidney disease became the leading illness for the first time. The main reasons are Taiwan's advanced dialysis technology, longer patient survival rates, an aging population, and the continuous growth of the dialysis population, driving up costs.
Taiwan's dialysis population has grown steadily, increasing from 56,090 in 2007 to 58,726 last year. Each dialysis patient undergoes treatment three times a week, costing approximately 600,000 yuan annually.
Due to the substantial business opportunities in dialysis, Teng Xihua, spokesperson for the National Health Insurance Supervision Alliance, suggested that patients seek multiple medical opinions before starting dialysis. For example, Hong Kong strongly encourages peritoneal dialysis, while Taiwan still predominantly uses hemodialysis. The medical community should also review whether some patients are starting dialysis prematurely.
Additionally, the growth rates for outpatient visits for chronic diseases such as breast cancer, hypertension, and diabetes have risen rapidly.
Li Chenghua stated that the outpatient cost growth rate for breast cancer patients reached 14%, the highest among the top 20 diseases, indicating a concerning trend of breast cancer affecting younger populations.
Source: http://health. chinatimes. com/ contents. aspx? cid=5,63& id=5865