Minister of Health and Welfare Shi Chongliang: The harm reduction program has achieved remarkable results. The HIV infection rate among injection drug addicts has dropped from 72% to 1.7%.

2026/10/05 10:44

Minister of Health and Welfare Shi Chongliang said that alternative therapies such as clean needles and methadone are harm reduction programs that the government continues to promote. (Photo by reporter Huang Yijing)

[Reporter Huang Yijing/Report from Taipei] Shen Boyang, a Taipei mayoral candidate from the Democratic Progressive Party, published an old article on drug policy 12 years ago, which was uncovered by the Kuomintang camp and accused Shen of "equaling drugs and medicines." On the 3rd, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wanan posted a message on Facebook asking Shen not to use the US-SA Winter Plan to cover up, and the comment area was flooded with scolds. Minister of Health and Welfare Shi Chongliang said that alternative therapies such as clean needles and methadone are harm reduction programs that the government continues to promote. After providing clean needles, the proportion of injecting drug addicts among new HIV infections has dropped significantly from 72% in 2005 to 1.7% last year.

Shi Chongliang attended the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s “2026 Domestic AI "3D Medical Imaging and Yuanverse Application Conference", in a joint interview with the media before the conference, he said that establishing a drug-free home and zero tolerance for drugs has always been a consistent policy, and scientific decision-making and strategic promotion must be adhered to when promoting various projects. The anti-drug policy is roughly divided into three parts, including: eradication from the source, that is, anti-drugs and anti-drug prevention; the second is to promote anti-drugs and expand anti-drug propaganda in schools; the third is "drug treatment" and "treatment", in which the Ministry of Health and Welfare plays an important role.

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Shi Chongliang pointed out that the harm reduction plan has been promoted by pilot projects since 2005 and 2006. The first is to provide clean needles to allow drug addicts to avoid cross-infection due to needle sharing, leading to the spread of hepatitis B, hepatitis C or AIDS. Since the implementation of the plan, the ratio of injecting drug addicts to new HIV infections has been , has dropped significantly from 72% in 2005 to 1.7% last year, which has achieved significant results in the prevention and treatment of AIDS; similarly, it has also shown a reversal in the number of new cases of AIDS patients. From the past, the number of cases continued to rise, and after reaching a peak in 2017, it continued to decline, and the number of new cases per year dropped significantly.

The harm reduction plan also includes the provision of alternative therapies in the community. Shi Chongliang said that detoxification is a long road, especially for heroin and opium users. Such drugs may have caused neuroencephalopathy in addicts, so detoxification must be gradual. At the beginning of the policy promotion, Methadone oral liquid was used for treatment, and after 2011, butylnorphine oral medicine was added. These alternative treatments can help heroin and opium drug users enter the medical system, receive community treatment, and help break away from drugs and return to society. From an empirical point of view, it can help drug addicts break away from criminal groups and reduce economic crimes.