A pediatrician working at the Taibao City Public Health Center in Chiayi County checks a young child under the government’s child medical care program, on April 16, 2024. CNA file photo

Taipei, July 18 (CNA) The Executive Yuan on Thursday approved plans to allocate approximately NT$13.5 billion (US$413 million) for child medical care over the next four years, nearly five times more than the current program.

At a Cabinet press briefing, Liu Yueh-ping (劉越萍), a senior official from the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW), said the government expects to spend NT$13.5 billion on medical care for pregnant women, newborns and children from fiscal 2025 to 2028.

She said the current program, budgeted at NT$2.79 billion for fiscal 2021 to 2024, yielded some results and the MOHW now hopes to further improve perinatal, neonatal and child care over the next four years.

The MOHW first rolled out the child medical care program in 2021 to address the failure to reduce mortality rates among children aged five and below and to tackle the shortage of pediatricians in rural areas.

At that time, the ministry noted that while the mortality rate for children in the 0-5 age group dropped from 9.7 per thousand in 1990 to 4.8 per thousand in 2015, this downward trend lags behind neighboring countries, such as Japan and South Korea.

According to Liu, the plans approved by the Cabinet on Thursday will be used to enhance the monitoring of child development and promote disease prevention services, such as dental and obesity examinations.

Under the plans, hospitals will receive subsidies for operating neonatal units and pediatric intensive care units, Liu said.

The plans also include bonuses for pediatricians and grants for them and their teams for overseas studies in treating children with cancer, as well as genetic and rare diseases, she added.

At the press event, Cabinet spokesman Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) cited Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) as saying earlier Thursday that it is hoped the next four-year program will effectively reduce the country’s infant and child mortality rates.