More than 1.3 billion Chinese people can afford medical care and medicines, according to an official from the China International Medical Insurance Bureau quoted by China Central Television. Many of the residents interviewed said that they could not afford the high cost of medical care.
The difficulty and high cost of medical care for China’s urban residents has become a household word. According to a CCTV news report, since the 13th Five-Year Plan, China has built the world’s largest basic medical insurance network, and more than 1.3 billion Chinese people have been able to afford medical care and medicines, with medical insurance policies benefiting 480 million people in poverty and helping nearly 10 million households to escape from poverty due to illness.
The report listed that Zhang Jianfeng, a villager from Shizhu County, Chongqing, had nasopharyngeal cancer, and after more than a year of treatment, his medical expenses cost 140,000 yuan, and he was reimbursed 130,000 yuan, and finally he only paid more than 10,000 yuan.On April 15, 2019, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China, visited the area. However, it is believed that these cases are rare in China.
He Huiling, a resident of Luoyang, Henan Province, just had an operation in April this year. She told Radio Free Asia on Tuesday (January 1) that the health insurance only covers part of the cost of medicine: “The medical bill is a big mountain, and I have no choice. I was able to get 80% reimbursement for my doctor’s visit, but now I’m getting 70% to 80% reimbursement for my medication, and some of it is completely out of pocket. I’m under a lot of pressure, and I have to pay more than $2,000 a month for medicine.”
Current and retired civil servants take up 90% of medical resources
In China, the highest percentage of government employees are reimbursed for medical expenses, up to 90%, and even completely free. He Huiling says that residents are reimbursed 70 to 80 percent of their medical expenses, and some even pay all out-of-pocket: “There is a part that is completely out of the scope of medical insurance, and farmers see if you buy medical insurance or not, they have a ‘New Rural Cooperative Medical Care’ (medical insurance), and the part that the individual pays for, if you have a stable job is okay, and if you don’t. If you have a cold, it used to be solved with a few dollars, but now the hospital charges hundreds, even thousands, of dollars.”
Qi Zhiyong, a Beijing June Fourth invalid, suffers from kidney failure and has to go to the hospital three times a week for dialysis. He told the station, “I can exactly say that it’s not like what they say about being able to afford to see a doctor. I have to go to the hospital for dialysis three times a week with kidney failure, and I have to pay more than $2,000 a month out of pocket. I can’t afford to pay for my retirement at all. I have to pay out-of-pocket for a lot of supportive medications. There are many examples of children who have liver cancer at the age of four and have to jump into the river with their father and daughter.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said at a press conference at the National People’s Congress in March 2019 that social security rates will be lowered on May 1; outpatient drugs for chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes will be included in medical insurance and reimbursed 50% this year; and the reimbursement standard for major medical insurance will be raised. However, the above situation has not really improved.
The company has a long history of developing new products and services, and it has a long history of developing new ones. It’s a great way to get the most out of your money. Secondly, all your medical insurance reimburses 70% to 75%, not including the cost of scalpels, etc. Many expenses are not covered. In fact, it is very good to be reimbursed 50% every time you are hospitalized or see a doctor. I have no health insurance, no social security, no income.”
Chinese people are heavily taxed but do not enjoy basic social benefits
CCTV reported that in 2020, the per capita financial assistance standard for resident medical insurance will reach more than 550 yuan, an increase of 170 yuan from 2015. The central government issued 27.5 billion yuan in medical aid funds, 90% of which went to the central and western regions.
Mr. Li, who used to work in the healthcare industry, said that China has long invested less in education and healthcare than even some poor countries in Africa. China’s private sector has borne a huge tax burden: “The lack of access to social security systems, such as health care and education, has long been a point of public discontent in China, so the slogans of poverty alleviation under the recent social movements of digital poverty alleviation, form poverty alleviation, and formal poverty alleviation are not comparable to those of Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea, and the United States. The percentage of our medical investment is very low.”
Last year, China’s total health spending as a percentage of GDP reached 6.6 percent, while the U.S. was above 18 percent, the U.K. above 9.7 percent, and the world average was greater than 10 percent.
Recent Comments