TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- An amendment to the National Health Insurance Act has just passed the third reading in the Legislative Yuan which will allow newborn children of foreigners legally residing in Taiwan to be automatically eligible for universal health care coverage, rather than wait for six months, as is currently the case, reported CNA.

The law currently requires newborn children of foreign residents in Taiwan to wait for six month before they are eligible for National Health Insurance (NIH). Such a long gap before a newborn child becomes eligible for health insurance during such a critical phase in their new life, has deterred many foreign professionals from having children in Taiwan or settling in Taiwan long-term to have children out of fear of endangering the health of their offspring.

Under Article 9 Paragraph 3 of the new amendment, babies born in Taiwan to foreigners who are employed, hold residence permits and have lived in Taiwan for at least six months, will automatically receive health insurance on the day of their birth.

In a recent interview with CNA, Vice Minister of Health and Welfare Tsai Sen-tien (蔡森田) said that in the future, as long as foreign parents have legal residence status in Taiwan, their children will automatically be eligible for NIH, regardelss of whether they are white- or blue-collar workers.

In response to concerns by some Taiwanese that Chinese might try to take advantage of this new law to have babies in Taiwan to game the system, Ministry of Health and Welfare Insurance Division Chief Huang Tai-ping (黃泰平) said in an interview with CNA that because visitors from China only have travel visas, they are not eligible for NIH, and therefore would not make a trip to Taiwan to give birth.