The National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) announced a groundbreaking collaboration with Google on Thursday, marking the first-ever AI healthcare research partnership in Taiwan. This five-year program is also a pioneering effort for Google globally.
The program combines NHIA’s database and Google’s cloud storage and AI capabilities with the aim of predicting disease risk among the population and integrating this information into an AI platform. It emphasizes early diagnosis and treatment and initially focuses on diabetes, as the condition affects about 2 million individuals in Taiwan.
NHIA Administration Director General Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) highlighted the significant burden of chronic diseases in the country. The AI program prioritizes chronic disease management, which is a key component of the Health Ministry’s "888 plan” per President Lai Ching-te’s (賴清德) policy for a healthy Taiwan.
Shih said the collaboration utilizes big data from NHIA, including age, comorbidities, family medical history, and risk factors. The predictions cover a time frame of one to ten years, as well as key indicators post-diagnosis, to help determine risk levels. This risk assessment will help guide patients to the appropriate providers, ensuring tailored healthcare delivery. The analysis results are then shared through “My Health Bank,” a personalized cloud-based service that enables individuals to monitor their own health status.