China's new rural cooperative medical care system was extended
to 1,399 counties by last June, covering 495 million rural
dwellers, says a white paper issued on Tuesday.
China began a medical care system pilot scheme in 2003, aiming
to pool funds from individuals, as well as local and central
governments to solve medical difficulties of rural dwellers.
Up to 396 million farmers, and over 73 percent of the elderly
people in the experimental areas, participated in this new-fangled
medical care system, says the white paper titled The
Development of China's Undertakings for the Aged.
A total of 14.412 billion yuan has been paid out among 282
million cases as subsidies to farmers who joined the new medical
care system, it says.
The central government now requires local governments to give
preferential treatment to participating people aged over 70 in
meeting their special needs, says the white paper.
A rural medical aid system has been established, with funds from
government allocations and public donations, to help the elderly
and poor farmers to join the new cooperative medical system.
The white paper says that the rural medical aid system has now
been set up nationwide. In 2005, over a billion yuan in medical aid
subsidy was allocated to farmers in 11.12 million cases.
The white paper says the government is exploring ways to set up
a remedial urban medical aid system by pooling medical aid funds
from various channels, such as state revenue allocations, public
lottery welfare funds and public donations, in order to subsidize
the medical costs of people in dire need.
By the end of 2005, experimental work had been conducted in
1,119 counties, providing medical aid in 1.633 million cases, the
white paper says.
(Xinhua News Agency December 12, 2006)
