The government has been promoting the Taiwan Hepatitis C Policy Guideline (2018-2025) to protect public health and support the World Health Organization's (WHO) goal of eliminating viral hepatitis by 2030. Taiwan's comprehensive initiative tackles hepatitis C through a treatment-led approach, integrating screening and control measures via a precisely targeted public health prevention system. After years of joint public-private efforts, the government now plans to apply to the WHO for hepatitis C elimination certification by the end of 2025, establishing Taiwan's approach as a model for the international community and advancing the administration's policy vision of a healthier Taiwan.
Key strategies
Optimally allocate and utilize limited medical resources based on the specific needs of different regions and demographic groups:
■ High prevalence areas: Integrate existing resources, such as hospitals, clinics and health centers, to prioritize screening and treatment interventions in central and southern Taiwan, where hepatitis C prevalence is higher.
■ Mountainous areas and outlying islands: Develop disease control models tailored to the distinct social, cultural, epidemiological and medical resource contexts of mountainous areas and outlying islands, giving priority to high prevalence areas. Measures include dispatching medical teams to deliver mobile medical services and collaborating with local residents and tribal leaders to carry out culturally appropriate public health awareness campaigns.
■ General population areas: Identify individuals with abnormal liver functions during medical checkups—such as through liver function tests for elevated aspartate transaminase (AST) or alanine transaminase (ALT)—and conduct further hepatitis C virus testing for those individuals.
■ High-risk populations: Establish strategies to halt viral infection and reinfection, such as providing methadone maintenance therapy for individuals with opioid dependence, and strengthening hepatitis C screening and follow-up within existing routine medical checks.