To respond to the needs of public transportation in remote places, the Bureau of Transportation, Tainan City Government has started to offer ‘taxi-bus’ services gradually from 2019. In addition to fixed routes, there is also transportation by appointment, which caters to the resident’s needs. Take Zuozhen District of Tainan city as an example. The population of the district is less than 3000, the majority of whom are the elderly. The NHIA has thus offered mobile healthcare in eight villages (Erliao, Neizhuang, Guanghe, Muguang, Chengshan, Zuozhen, Ganglin and Junghe). The elderly can make appointments for the taxi-bus and take the bus at the designated point. The elderly can thus have convenient access to mobile healthcare.
For the elderly in remote places, going to the city for medical treatment is not only expensive but time-consuming. The NHIA thus manages to offer more resources such as professional health care workers and equipment. In 2021, the mobile healthcare in Yunlin, Chiayi and Tainan has reached 146 spots, 107 of which are situated in long-term care spots and community centers. However, taxi-bus services have not yet become accessible for every senior citizen. It is thus expected that in the future, the taxi-bus should take the healthcare spots into consideration, and the interdisciplinary collaboration within the government can thus further respond to the needs of the elderly.