President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of October 31 with Dr. Roland P. Brown, founder of the Mennonite Christian Hospital in Hualien City on Taiwan's east coast. The president, on behalf of the government and people of the ROC, expressed his deepest admiration and gratitude to Dr. Brown for his years of selfless contributions to Taiwan.
In remarks, President Ma stated that the Mennonite Central Committee U.S. in 1953 supported Dr. Brown in coming to Taiwan as part of a mobile medical team to work in mountainous areas inhabited by indigenous tribes and the underprivileged in eastern Taiwan. The team grew over time into the Mennonite Christian Hospital, which during its first eight years accepted only NT$1 from any patient who was either an indigenous tribesperson or an underprivileged person. This, President Ma remarked, enabled people to seek medical care without having to worry about the cost. As a result, many poor people in eastern Taiwan who used to go without medical care had access to it thanks in no small part to Dr. Brown.
The president also mentioned that Dr. Brown worked for years to develop medical care in eastern Taiwan and safeguard people's health in remote areas. His undertakings included: establishing milk stations for undernourished schoolchildren; organizing clubs for patients in hospitals; and creating funds for infants born pre-maturely, those in the need of kidney dialysis, and persons suffering from leukemia. President Ma expressed his deepest admiration for Dr. Brown, who worked 40 years without ever accepting a salary from the hospital.
The president stated that in order to thank foreigners who have made contributions to Taiwan over the course of many years here, the government three years ago launched the Mackay Project, under which such individuals receive discounts when riding public transport, entering public recreation facilities, and receiving long-term care services. The president said he is pleased that 219 foreigners with long experience in Taiwan now receive benefits under the project.
As for the state of health care in remote areas of Taiwan, President Ma stated, the Ministry of Health and Welfare is actively promoting eight major strategies to enhance medical care for residents there, and 48 remote townships now enjoy improved medical services thanks to the adoption of electronic medical histories. Hospitals operated under the ministry provide real-time medical imaging and interpretation support, while academic medical centers in regions throughout Taiwan provide comprehensive support to remote areas and offshore islands, he said. Furthermore, mobile medical service teams make periodic stops in remote communities to provide more convenient medical care for residents there, he noted, and the ministry has continued running a project to cultivate and retain staff at clinics in remote areas. Since he took office in 2008, the program has provided training to 235 health care workers, of whom 72% have been doctors, the president remarked.
Discussing policy on medical services and transportation in Hualien and Taitung, President Ma pointed out that since 2012 when the government began an initiative to enhance the quality of medical services in remote areas, it has provided extra subsidies of roughly NT$40 million to the Hualien area each year. In addition, a program to boost national health insurance subsidies in these remote areas and on offshore islands has resulted in extra investment by the government of NT$415 million, with Hualien receiving NT$18.35 million of this total, the president said.
President Ma further stated that the government has also electrified the railway along the eastern coast and carried out double tracking where there are bottlenecks. The government has also introduced the Puyuma Express line, which features tilting trains that can operate at a high speed even on steep gradients, he stated. The trip from Hualien to Taipei now takes only a bit over two hours, and the journey from Taitung to Taipei only requires 3.5 hours, which has greatly enhanced the convenience of transportation links to the eastern coast, the president noted. At the same time, the government has already invested over NT$40 billion to strengthen infrastructure in the Hualien and Taitung regions to reduce the development gap between eastern and western Taiwan, he said.
Lastly, the president reiterated his gratitude to Dr. Brown for the sacrifices he has made to improve medical care in Taiwan, and expressed hope that Dr. Brown will frequently come back to Taiwan for visits to further strengthen bonds of friendship.