Experts say Chinese government's county-level hospital reforms seriously underfunded

 22-Oct-15, SCMP 

China's recently-announced reform of county-level hospitals is seriously underfunded, according to experts quoted in the South China Morning Post (see China: 14 October 2015). Fudan University public health professor Hu Shanlian was quoted as saying "[The funding] is surely not enough. Now that hospitals are no longer allowed to mark-up drugs, the drop in their revenue is huge, especially in bigger hospitals of higher rankings".

Image: South China Morning Post

Local public hospitals' lack of funding is unsurprising, becoming apparent soon after drug mark-ups were abolished as part of China's wide-ranging healthcare reforms. However, the willingness of prominent local experts to openly criticise the latest reform soon after its announcement is significant, reflecting frustration over China's lingering issues such as unaffordable drug prices.

Local hospitals are expected to raise medical-service fees to compensate for their revenue shortfall. However, this may also potentially raise expenses for patients, defeating the purpose of the reforms. The central government is expected to issue new regulations on medical service pricing.

 Insights