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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 New rules protect rights of those stuck overseas
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung holds a card at the Central Epidemic Command Center in Taipei yesterday that shows eight new imported COVID-19 cases, no new local cases and no related deaths during the past 24 hours. As tomorrow is International Day of Persons with Disabilities, Chen said he wore the transparent mask to promote improving communication with people with a hearing impairment. Photo courtesy of the Central Epidemic Command Center
TOO LONG ABROAD? Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung said regulations have been changed to not harm the rights of overseas Taiwanese
By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter
Taiwanese who have been removed from household registration records due to the COVID-19 pandemic can re-enroll into the National Health Insurance （NHI） scheme upon returning to Taiwan without the normal six-month wait, the Central Epidemic Command Center （CECC） said yesterday.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung （陳時中）, who heads the center, said that the pandemic has made international travel more difficult, so the rights and interests of some overseas Taiwanese might have been harmed, as they could not return home.
Government agencies have made adjustments to regulations to reduce possible damage to the rights and interests of overseas Taiwanese, Chen said.
Department of Social Insurance Director Shang Tung-fu （商東福） said that those who have been away from Taiwan for more than two years are removed from household registration and withdrawn from the NHI scheme, but measures have been put in place to protect their right to enroll with the NHI and the national pension scheme.
People who were enrolled with the NHI on Jan. 1 last year can apply to the NHI Administration to continue their enrollment from the day they were removed, Shang said.
People who have been delisted from the household registration and NHI since Jan. 1, 2018, but return to Taiwan between Jan. 1 last year and Dec. 31 next year, can re-enroll with the NHI immediately without having to wait six months, he said.
The eased rules are similar for the national pension, he said, adding that people who were enrolled on Jan. 1 last year should apply with the Labor Insurance Bureau to continue their enrollment.
People who lose their household registration between Jan. 1 last year and Dec. 31 next year, and were not able to stay in Taiwan for more than 183 days per year for the past three years can apply with the bureau to have their claims recognized, he said.
The Ministry of Finance’s Taxation Administration also announced eased rules for recognizing residency for people who were removed from their household registration due to travel difficulties caused by the pandemic, as residency affects individual income tax and land value tax.
Meanwhile, Chen said that as of yesterday, the nation’s first-dose vaccination rate had reached 77.93 percent, while the full vaccination rate reached 56.8 percent.
Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang （莊人祥）, the CECC’s spokesman, said that there are still about 9.37 million COVID-19 vaccine doses in four brands available in Taiwan.
As there is now sufficient supply of vaccines in the nation, the CECC urges unvaccinated or partially vaccinated people to get fully vaccinated as soon as possible to reduce the risk of serious complications or death, Chen said.
Taiwan yesterday reported eight imported cases, with six among them vaccine breakthrough infections, the CECC said.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
