Though internationally acclaimed, and named among the best in the world by America’s Cable News Network (CNN), the NHI system’s 1995 launch met with grumblings and doubts here at home. The system has certainly faced challenges and difficulties over its 20 years of existence, but it it is also justly renowned for the many lives it has saved, with the result that the deluge of early doubts has long since given way to gratitude.
The big events of 1995 were a mixed bag for Taiwan. While the introduction of the NHI scheme was great news for our healthcare system, we also learned that singer Teresa Teng, reputed to possess the most beautiful voice in the Mando-pop world, had died in Thailand from an asthma attack.
Just 43 at the time, Teng had recorded many classic songs, including “Small Town Stories” and “I Only Care about You,” that offered solace to innumerable fans in those more reserved times.
Her magical voice crossed national borders to Japan and Indonesia, and even carried across the then-tense Taiwan Strait to mainland China. A mainland joke from that era highlights its incredible power and charm: “By day, we listen to the elder Deng [Deng Xiaoping]; at night, it’s the younger Deng [Teresa Teng].” (“Deng” and “Teng” are different spellings of the same family name.)
Teng herself may be gone, but her voice lives on. In her absence, Taiwan has continued to build on its soft-power miracle, reaching across still more national boundaries in hopes of touching both those who know us and those who don’t.
Taiwan’s National Health Insurance system launched amid a chorus of doubts. Nowadays, it not only protects the health of Taiwan’s citizens, but has also become a model for public health systems around the world.
Taiwan’s National Health Insurance system launched amid a chorus of doubts. Nowadays, it not only protects the health of Taiwan’s citizens, but has also become a model for public health systems around the world.
