Taipei, Dec. 17 (CNA) Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Lai Chingde (賴明德) said Saturday that part of his health policy program will focus on improving pediatric health care.
Focus areas include reducing infant mortality and improving care for children with severe, complex and rare diseases, he said at an annual event hosted by the Taiwan Association for Critically Ill Children in Taipei.
Lai, who previously earned a master's degree in public health from Harvard University and is currently the vice president of Taiwan, is a practicing physician who believes that improvements are needed in the medical care of children with genetic diseases and cancer. He also said.
Dr Lai said that children and their parents who suffer from serious illnesses are extremely vulnerable, and in his career as a doctor he has learned that it is important for those suffering to maintain hope. He said that.
“It's difficult for doctors to help” desperate people because medical teams often have to “work twice as hard to get half the results,” he said.
Mr. Lai said that as a politician, he looks forward to further cooperation with the association so that in the future he can focus more on helping children in need.
Lai said the Ministry of Health and Welfare is promoting the establishment of children's hospitals at several medical centers across the country, including National Taiwan University Hospital and McKay Memorial Hospital.
He also reiterated plans announced in September to establish a NT$10 billion (US$318.43 million) new drug research fund. A similar fund focused on researching new drugs to treat cancer has also been proposed by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare and is expected to be established next year.
“I have been thinking about what I can do to contribute to Taiwanese society (if elected) compared to other presidents, and I have concluded that one of the areas I should focus on is health. ” said the presidential candidate. .
President Tsai Ing-wen (Tsai Ing-wen) received her J.D. from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and her predecessor Ma Ying-jeou (Ma Ying-jeou) received her J.D. from Harvard Law School. Chen Shui-bian earned a bachelor's degree from the National Taiwan University School of Law and worked as a lawyer before becoming a politician.
