社会办医 (shèhuì bànyī): Promoting nongovernment medical services

At a recent executive meeting of the State Council, China's Cabinet, presided over by Premier Li Keqiang, it was decided to promote nongovernment provided medical services so as to better meet people's demand.

People are used to thinking that China's medical resources are in short supply, but that does not mean that China does not have enough medical institutions or that the supply of highly qualified doctors is not enough to meet the needs of the patients.

The executive meeting of the State Council has emancipated doctors by requiring the implementation of a regional registration system for doctors, which means that after a doctor is registered, the doctor can practice freely throughout a province.

This will benefit both doctors and patients, because once doctors are free to move freely it should ease some of the talent bottlenecks.

Private GP clinics, independent medical examination organizations and rehabilitation nursing organizations as well as traditional Chinese medicine clinics are being promoted.

The examination and approval process for nongovernment medical service organizations will be unified and completed online.

Private medical services can effectively help ease the difficulty of seeing a doctor in China, and their provision is a significant measure to deepen medical reform. It is expected that it will become increasingly easier for private capital to enter the healthcare sector.

The relevant policies promulgated by the State Council can be regarded as a prescription to solve some of the problems that exist in the country's medical system.