A Realistic Review of the Drug‐Injury Relief System in Taiwan: Challenges, Lessons, and Achievements

Abstract

The drug‐injury relief system in Taiwan was implemented 20 years ago with the goal of providing timely relief for drug injuries incurred by the proper use of legal drugs. This system utilizes a nonlitigation expert review process to evaluate drug‐injury relief applications, and 2,732 applications have been reviewed from 1999−2016. Of these, 1,572 applications received relief payments, an approval rate of 58%. Average review timeframes per application have decreased from 248 days (2003–2011) to 182 days (2012–2016). Most adverse drug reactions (ADRs) for approved cases involved skin and subcutaneous tissue disorders (67%), with allopurinol being the primary culprit drug. A recent decline observed for such ADRs may reflect the influences of promotional activities and policy initiatives carried out according to informed analysis from drug‐injury relief applications, which suggests that the drug‐injury relief system can also play an important public health role in enhancing drug safety.