China will establish a traditional Chinese medicine service network covering both urban and rural areas up to 2010, according to a government traditional Chinese medicine development plan.

The State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine (SATCM) recently publicized its eleventh five-year (2006-2010) development plan for traditional Chinese medicine . The plan said traditional Chinese medicine will play more important role in dealing with public health emergencies, in preventing and controlling severe diseases and in establishing new rural cooperative medical system and urban community medical system in the coming five years, said the plan.

Government will train more professionals in traditional Chinese medicine . And traditional Chinese medicine will be protected and spread through legislation, said the plan.

A unified traditional Chinese medicine production and prescription standard system will be established, during the 2006-2010 period.

However, a professor with Central South University recently launched an on-line petition calling for the removal of traditional Chinese medicine from the country's health care system for the fact that shoddy traditional Chinese medicine plagues market.

A source with the SATCM said, "The idea of abolishing traditional Chinese medicine is a denial of science."

Yang Yonghua, a professor with the Hunan Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, said traditional Chinese medicine is undeniably a mainstream medical treatment method in China.

He noted that 50 percent of patients suffering terminal stage cancer opt for traditional Chinese medicine treatments.

(Xinhua News Agency October 20, 2006)