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In 2006, the State Council approved the formation of a cross-department healthcare reform coordination board. The board aims to facilitate collaboration between various government bodies to find a reform solution that matches the reality of China’s healthcare system. This board is made up of representatives from the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, etc. The board collected 8 proposals for healthcare reform from the Development Research Centre under the State Council, Beijing University, Fudan University, Beijing Normal University, Renmin University, the World Bank, the World Health Organization (WHO) and McKinsey & Company. In addition, the National Development and Reform Commission has also launched an online discussion on "suggestions for healthcare reform" to gather suggestions and insight from the public.
The healthcare reform proposal has recently been completed and will be presented to the State Council and then announced to the public for wider public consultation before it is piloted. There has been a lot of speculation, analysis and debates on the reform, so its progress will be keenly watched.
In the early 1950s, budget constraints within the government led to hospitals selling drugs to patients at a price 15% higher than cost. This policy was a solution for healthcare at the time, but has led to many problems such as kickbacks, the high price of drugs and unreasonably expensive healthcare. Studies show that around 80% of drugs are currently sold through hospitals in China.
In recent years, there has been increasing advocacy for a separation between hospitals and the profits gained through the sale of drugs. This idea has resulted in pilot programs in Shanghai, Qingdai, Xining, etc. However, as yet, this has met with little success. Hospitals remain in control of the lion’s share of drug distribution. In the meantime, drugs sales continue to be a key part of hospital revenue. Government departments have vowed to solve the problem through increased healthcare investment, pricing reform, as well as through other means. These measures will inevitably be part of the healthcare reform. Some media have speculated that the 15% increase in medicine cost will be scrapped. Instead, a prescription fee of 10 yuan will represent the value of the doctors’ service. This aims to prevent doctors from prescribing a lengthy list of expensive drugs to the patients. However, this practice is still under debate.
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