In response to the needs for medical care and social welfare in the aftermath of the Formosa Fun Coast incident, Minister Been-Huang Chiang held and presided at the second meeting of the task force of the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) on the afternoon of June 30, to continue to understand and discuss current matters such as the inventory of medical capacity, medical treatment, supply and distribution of medications and medical supplies, risk assessments for the injured, psychological care, social welfare and relief services. 

1. The MOHW expressed its deep sorrow and grief over the passing of Ms. Li yesterday. It will do its utmost to support and help the brave victims who are fighting for their lives and strive to provide the best care for all of the injured, so that they will successfully survive the critical period. 

2. A medical expert consultant team for the Formosa Fun Coast incident was officially formed on June 30. The team consists of nearly 30 specialists in burn treatment and critical care, including specialists with considerable medical care experience from Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital, and the Zuoying Branch of Kaohsiung Armed Forces General Hospital as well as the directors of the burn centers at major medical centers such as National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Tri-Service General Hospital, and Far Eastern Memorial Hospital. The goal of this team is to help evaluate the appropriateness of transfer of the victims and provide the hospitals with professional medical care advice and experience during this crucial medical care period. 

3. Social care systems have been launched in New Taipei City and 15 other cities and counties. The social workers deployed to the hospitals in these cities and counties have visited nearby victims and provided them with care, immediate counseling, information about resources, and referral services. By June 29, 336 social workers have been deployed, and 2,059 people have been consoled. For questions related to social relief, people may call the 1957 Hotline. As major disaster response systems have been initiated, the MOHW will speed up the processing of applications to raise public welfare funds for this incident. The MOHW would also like to remind the public to be cautious when making donations. 

4. After discussions, the National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) and the Public Health Department of New Taipei City Government have decided that from June 27, 2015 to September 30, 2015, the patients from this incident should be exempted from the self-pay medical expenses that are not covered by the health, including copayments, hospital bed balance billings, self-pay costs of medical supplies for burns, treatment fees, and ambulance charges. These expenses will be advance by the NHIA and then reimbursed by the New Taipei City Government through a special scheme. As for foreigners who are not covered by health insurance, all of their medical expenses will also be advanced by the NHIA and then reimbursed by the New Taipei City Government through the same scheme. The MOHW hereby reiterates that the NHIA will file a subrogation lawsuit against the insurer of the public liability insurance for Formosa Fun Coast and the activity organizer that is liable pursuant to Article 95 of the National Health Insurance Act to seek compensation for the medical expenses paid by the NHIA. 

5. The insured victims who do not have their health insurance cards with them may seek medical care via medical exceptions. If health insurance cards are lost or damaged due to the dust explosion, the NHIA will issue new ones free of charge. The NHIA has set up information counters for the injured to consult in regard to expense payment and other relevant questions. 

6. The supply of and demand for medications among the hospitals have been continuously investigated and monitored according to the established list of necessary and crucial medications for the injured (mainly consisting of human albumin, burn ointments, and solutions for intravenous infusion). Real-time information regarding the supply of medications is available for search. If a hospital makes a request, the MOHW will help to find suppliers. Those with urgent needs will be given priority when allocating medication and medical supplies. The opinions of the experts were also taken into account during today’s meeting, and it was decided that the Food and Drug Administration will initiate a special scheme to import donated cadaver skin from overseas skin banks and that the necessary expenses will be handled under the scheme. 

7. The decision was made to request the medical associations and nurses associations to help build a database of human resources that can help with burn treatment, so as to respond to the rearrangement and reinforcement of manpower required for medical care. Thus, plans can be made, if necessary, to coordinate and support the deployment of human resources to the hospitals that are providing hospitalization and treatment for a large number of injured victims. The overtime pay for existing nursing personnel and the expenses required for employing additional support personnel will be paid through a special fund. 

8. Statistics of medical treatment for the victims of the Formosa Fun Coast explosion (as of 12:00 on 06/30): Of the 434 people who continued to be hospitalized, one has passed away, and 240 were in the intensive care units. The hospitalized victims were admitted to 52 hospitals in 11 cities and counties, including Keelung City, Taipei City, New Taipei City, Taoyuan City, Hsinchu City, Taichung City, Kaohsiung City, Tainan City, Changhua County, Chiayi County, and Chiayi City. Five of the injured were from mainland China and ten were from foreign countries. 

Once again, the MOHW appreciates the assistance from all sectors, including the medical supply organizations that generously provided medical resources and the enthusiastic citizens who donated blood. The MOHW would like to especially thank the medical personnel involved for doing their best to provide emergency treatment and follow-up care for the injured after the incident. The distribution and deployment of medical resources have been explained in a transparent and open way. The explanations are also available on the website of the MOHW for all sectors to search and access. People should not easily believe and spread false information, or trust folk remedies or other rumors to prevent damage to their health.