Fewer elections: Yaung

Yaung seemed to have stood firm on leaving the post as of yesterday. He returned to his office in the morning to pack his things without using his vehicle provided by the government.

When talking to reporters, he asked to be addressed as the “former” DOH head, a sign of his determination to leave despite Premier Wu Den-yih's efforts to dissuade him from stepping down.

Yaung noted that major political parties and all candidates irrational oppose any sensible national policies that will have long-term benefits for the public but could offend voters in elections.

He called for holding a national referendum to consolidate elections and reduce the number of cutthroat political contests in the form of elections.

Meanwhile, President Ma Ying-jeou joined Premier Wu yesterday in a call for Yaung to stay on.

Ma showed his support for the premier's move of turning down Yaung's request for resigning as he praised the DOH chief's performance and contributions, a Presidential Office official said.

“The president supports reforms for the national health insurance system and thinks that the readjustment of the insurance premium rates has room for discussion,” said Presidential Office spokesman Lo Chih-chiang.

Lo also dismissed media reports that a high-level meeting at the Presidential Office Monday was the key triggering Yaung's resignation.

According to the reports, participants at the gathering intended to support Premier Wu's proposal that 75 percent of the population enrolled in the compulsory NHI program be left unaffected by the premium increase plan, as opposed to 59 percent under the DOH head's version.

Lo said the participants did discuss several options to improve the NHI system's finances, but the only consensus reached at the meeting was to invite relevant officials to give a briefing March 17.

When answering lawmakers' questions at the Legislative Yuan, Premier Wu reiterated his ongoing efforts to retain Yaung.

Wu said his secretary general at the Executive Yuan (Cabinet) will talk with Yaung over the issue as early as possible.

Difference of Opinion

“The issue can be resolved, but people should not leave rashly,” the premier said, characterizing the dispute as simply a difference of opinion over whether a tiered or single premium rate system should be adopted.

According to the premier, the DOH proposed to maintain a single rate system, under which only 59 percent of the population would be exempt from premium hikes.

Yaung's plan would have meant that 41 percent of the insured paid an extra NT$97 per month on average for their premiums, while the underprivileged, farmers, fishermen and the military would not have had to pay more.

But Wu said that plans developed by the Cabinet using a tiered rate, requiring those in higher income brackets to pay higher rates, would leave up to 75 percent of the insured unaffected by premium hikes.

Vice Premier Eric Liluan Chu, who also expressed his strong hope that Yaung would remain on the job, said the rate hike question was still open to discussion within the Cabinet.

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