The Chinese State Council yesterday said it will push patients to seek medical treatment locally in a bid to overhaul an overburdened healthcare system where wide gaps between urban and rural care often mean people travel hundreds of kilometers to seek help in cities.
Beijing is hoping that by 2017 all patients with serious illnesses will receive treatment within their own county, the State Council said in a statement laying out various ways to improve access and lower healthcare fees.
China’s healthcare reform drive could reduce steep costs for its citizens, who often save up large “rainy day” funds in case a family member falls ill.
The drive is also a lure for investors and firms betting billions of dollars on China opening up a market set to be worth around US$1.3 trillion by 2020.
“We are working hard to ensure that people can get treatment where they are,” the statement said.
However, the government is facing big challenges in its drive to overhaul the unpopular healthcare system that is blighted by crowded hospitals, corruption and simmering tension between patients and staff.
The statement added that China plans to increase training and incentives for rural doctors, reduce public hospitals’ reliance on drug sales and ensure that health insurance schemes for serious illness should cover over 50 percent of patients’ costs this year.
Gaza is rapidly running out of its limited fuel supply and stocks of food staples might become tight, officials said, after Israel blocked the entry of fuel and goods into the war-shattered territory, citing fighting with Iran. The Israeli military closed all Gaza border crossings on Saturday after announcing airstrikes on Iran carried out jointly with the US. Israeli authorities late on Monday night said that they would reopen the Kerem Shalom crossing from Israel to Gaza yesterday, for “gradual entry of humanitarian aid” into the strip, without saying how much. Israeli authorities previously said the crossings could not be operated safely during
Hungarian authorities temporarily detained seven Ukrainian citizens and seized two armored cars carrying tens of millions of euros in cash across Hungary on suspicion of money laundering, officials said on Friday. The Ukrainians were released on Friday, following their detention on Thursday, but Hungarian officials held onto the cash, prompting Ukraine to accuse Hungary’s Russia-friendly government of illegally seizing the money. “We will not tolerate this state banditism,” Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha said. The seven detained Ukrainians were employees of the Ukrainian state-owned Oschadbank, who were traveling in the two armored cars that were carrying the money between Austria and
Kosovar President Vjosa Osmani on Friday after dissolving the Kosovar parliament said a snap election should be held as soon as possible to avoid another prolonged political crisis in the Balkan country at a time of global turmoil. Osmani said it is important for Kosovo to wrap up the upcoming election process and form functional institutions for political stability as the war rages in the Middle East. “Precisely because the geopolitical situation is that complex, it is important to finish this electoral process which is coming up,” she said. “It is very hard now to imagine what will happen next.” Kosovo, which declared
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