KEELUNG (TVBS News) — Kuomintang (KMT) Presidential Candidate Hou Yu-ih proposed revising the employment conditions for migrant caregivers on Tuesday (Aug. 29), advocating for the exemption of the Barthel Index requirement for individuals aged 80 and above.
Speaking at the Xinyi day care center for seniors in Keelung City, Hou outlined four primary policies he hopes to introduce if elected president in 2024.
These notions include abolishing the Barthel Index for the elderly, integrating caregiver migrant workers into Taiwan's long-term care system, employing stability funds to directly assist employers in hiring local caregivers, thereby improving their salaries and working conditions, and easing the burden on domestic caregivers to allow women to return to the workplace without worry.
Hou stressed that while most seniors wish to age at home, the number of family caregivers dwindles annually. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW), 60% of caregiving duties fall on women, with 40% being forced to leave their jobs.
Statistics from the Control Yuan indicated that only around 20% of Taiwanese individuals are willing to receive professional training and enter elderly care, leading to labor shortages and high prices.
As families struggle to find adequate care for their elderly members, some may resort to falsifying information to pass the Barthel Index assessment, thereby increasing pressure on evaluating doctors.
Furthermore, the intense workload for migrant caregivers could also result in them running away and becoming undocumented workers.
The Control Yuan reported that over 30,000 migrant caregivers went missing in August, accounting for 36% of the total missing migrant workers, posing an additional burden on families.
