The Ministry of Health and Welfare has removed a cap on registration fees at medical institutions, and all fee-related disputes will be handled by the Fair Trade Commission, Department of Civil Ethics Director-General Liu Yueh-ping (劉越萍) said yesterday.
Liu made the comments following the annulment of the Recommended Range for Registration Fees for Medical Facilities (醫療機構收取掛號費之參考範圍), which was announced on Monday.
In 2010, the Department of Health, the predecessor to the ministry, capped registration fees at medical institutions at NT$150, with those charging more required to report to the department.
Photo: Tsai Shu-yuan, Taipei Times
The announcement on Monday also stipulated that all medical facilities, starting immediately, must post their registration fee on site or on their Web site, so that people are aware of the change, she said.
Liu said she did not think medical facilities would drastically increase their registration fees, adding that the public would be able to judge for themselves whether the listed price is reasonable.
This transparency would ensure that market mechanisms determined prices, she said.
The Fair Trade Commission would step in if medical institutions begin colluding on registration fees, she said.
Prior to Monday’s announcement, about 200 clinics in Taichung had increased their registration fees to NT$200 to NT$300 per person, citing increases in personnel and operating costs after COVID-19.
A total of 205 hospitals or clinics in Taipei also had increased their registration fee last year, most of them between NT$200 and NT$300 per outpatient visit,Taipei Department of Health data showed.
Taiwan Medical Association deputy secretary-general Lin Heng-li (林恆立) yesterday said that clinics and hospitals wanted to adjust their registration fees as commodity prices had increased.
The government listened to public opinion in allowing clinics and hospitals to set their registration fees based on their operating costs, Lin said.
He said that he does not expect there to be a period of registration fee hikes.
Association secretary-general Chang Pi-cheng (張必正) said the policy would help clinics and hospitals operate in a more healthy manner and enable doctors to focus more on providing medical services.
Additional reporting with CNA
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