Hospital reform to ensure better care

China will carry out reforms at public hospitals to optimize medical care resources to better serve a “healthy China” with more convenient services.

The decision was made at a State Council executive meeting presided over by Premier Li Keqiang on Oct 9.

The meeting decided that reforms in the pricing of medical services will continue to move toward dynamic price adjustments to better reflect the expertise of medical workers.

One or two cities in provincial areas where the comprehensive medical reforms are being piloted will be chosen for medical insurance payment reform, covering all medical care institutions and servi- ces. The government will also designate more than 100 disease categories for an insurance payment-by-category reform, the meeting decided.

All major public hospitals are required to join in the development of such partnerships before the end of October.

Li said at the meeting that the country’s medical care reforms should adhere to the principle of guaranteeing basic healthcare, building up working mechanisms and strengthening community health services.

China began its latest round of healthcare reform in 2009.

By September, all public hospitals in China had joined the comprehensive reform program.