Research and Application: the Political Economy of the National Health Insurance in Taiwan and a Grassroots Movement
Friday, April 15th, 2011
| Date | Time | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Friday, April 15, 2011 | 12:00PM - 2:00PM | Seminar Room 108N, Munk Centre For International Studies 1 Devonshire Place |
Description
The establishment of NHI in 1995 was a milestone in Taiwan’s history of public health. However, over the past 15 years, Taiwan’s NHI has been surrounded with deficit-related controversies. By bringing the analysis of production back in, I will provide a political-economic analysis of Taiwan’s NHI. I will argue that, under the logic of capital accumulation and expansion, the commodified and marketized medical industry is the culprit of the perpetual NHI deficit problem.
The medicalization, commodification, marketization, and corporatization of the public health system are part of the many social problems plaguing Taiwan. A group of intellectuals in the field of public health and medicine has been promoting a transformative grassroots movement to resolve fundamental public health problems. This movement is fully based on critical public health research. The author, using this current NHI research as an example, will analyze how this grassroots movement has been initiated and promoted.
Bio:
Meei-shia Chen is Professor, Department of Public Health, National Cheng Kung University and President, Taiwan Association for Promoting Public Health. She was associate professor of health policy at the University of Chicago 1990-1996. Her research interests include political economy of health policy, health care reform, health inequalities, and workers’ health.
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