In response to the impact brought by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), government agencies have formulated relief and restoration measures to help businesses experiencing operational hardship in accordance with the provisions of Article 9, Paragraph 3 of the Special Act for Prevention, Relief and Revitalization Measures for Severe Pneumonia with Novel Pathogens. The Executive Yuan designated the Ministry of Economic Affairs to set up the "1988 economic relief and stimulus hotline," which is to be launched officially on March 27 and whose purpose is to help businesses and the public to obtain information about relief and restoration measures. It is also a means of convenience, since these measures are dispersed across several government units, including the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Transportation and Communications, Council of Agriculture, Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Hakka Affairs Council, and Council of Indigenous Peoples, and additional measures that may also be rolled out by the Executive Yuan based on the development of the pandemic.

The 1988 hotline is free of charge. Members of the public or businesses can call the hotline by mobile phone or landline. Customer service specialists will provide information about the relief and restoration measures and transfer inquirers to the contact persons of relevant agencies. In the early stage, the 1988 hotline offers 30 voice-based and 10 text-based telephone customer services from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., seven days a week. Services are also available in English. Moreover, smart customer services on the Relief and Stimulus section of the MOEA's website provide 24-hour inquiry services from its database of frequently asked questions. The 1988 hotline aims to help the public and businesses instantly acquire straightforward relief information through a single channel, instead of needing to search for information across various sites.

Anyone from the public or a business who requires services can call the 1988 relief and stimulus hotline, available as of March 27.