China’s coronavirus success could see Hong Kong-style subsidised medical care in mainland, health expert says
- Professor Li Ling, from Peking University, says China’s successful handling of the pandemic is a good argument for implementation of universal medical care
- Currently, reimbursements from China’s public medical insurance programmes are relatively low and capped, meaning the public must cover most health costs
Mainland China’s success in combating the coronavirus pandemic increases the likelihood that free public health care, similar to Hong Kong, will be provided for the nation’s 1.4 billion-strong population, says a leading expert on the country’s medical care reform.
“China’s success in containing transmission of the virus last year was largely due to the up-to-the-minute free testing and treatment, the result was very good with an affordable price,” said Li Ling, a professor at the National School of Development at Peking University.
“It was similar to Hong Kong’s public health care, which is virtually free to all individuals and works very well.
“China is still a developing country with a large population, but with our national power today, it is possible to provide free medical care.”
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About 95 per cent of mainland China’s population is covered by a public medical insurance programme, with most falling under either the urban or urban-rural resident schemes.
The urban scheme is mandatory public insurance funded mainly by employee and employer’s payroll taxes with minimal government funding, while the urban-rural plan is voluntary and mostly subsidised by the government.
However, reimbursements from the public insurance programmes are relatively low – less than 50 per cent in general – and there is a ceiling, meaning the public must cover most of the cost.
“Although the government continues to increase investment in health care, the cost for individuals is increasing much faster than the rate of government investment, so the public still feel that they cannot afford to see a doctor,” said Li, who is also the chief adviser on China’s health care reform for the World Bank.