China is carrying out a large-scale anti-corruption campaign in the healthcare sector, in a “new approach” to reduce medical costs and revive the country’s faltering economy, a newspaper reported.Wall Street Journal“American.
Communist Party members have carried out raids on hospitals and medical institutions across China, arresting more than 190 hospital heads, directors and deputy directors – current and former – so far this year, according to the American newspaper’s review of government data.
In the past, the Chinese Communist Party has targeted corruption in the health care sector, but this year’s campaign has been particularly strong, echoing recent crackdowns on internet giants and the after-school tutoring industry, which have upended vast swaths of the world’s second-largest economy.
A retired regional party leader who held a senior government post overseeing health care reforms from 2010 to 2015 was arrested in late August on charges of “serious violations of discipline and law” — a euphemism for corruption.
The National Health Commission and the top disciplinary agency of the Chinese Communist Party did not respond to inquiries from The Wall Street Journal for comment.
Despite the slowdown in growth…why doesn’t the Chinese President make the “economy a priority”?
China’s complex economic problems, including real estate sector turmoil, high local government debt and weak consumption, have prompted the country’s president, Xi Jinping, to unleash billions of dollars to support spending, halt the slide into deflation and support the weak currency.
This campaign comes as the Chinese economy enters a new era of slow growth, and the leadership seeks to push people to spend more money.
“Fighting corruption is one way to reduce health care bills, which is a concern for Chinese families, and encourages them to save rather than consume,” said Yale University associate professor Shi Chen, who studies health policy and economics.
Healthcare experts say the campaign “also serves Chinese President Xi Jinping’s pledge to achieve common prosperity.”
Beijing has long sought to combat rising housing, education and health care costs, often described in China as the “three great mountains” that contribute significantly to many families’ living expenses.
Economists say this has “exacerbated wealth inequality, burdened consumption and economic growth, and contributed to lower birth rates.”
Supporting the economy or canceling incentives? China faces a dilemma of choices
A report published by Axios on Wednesday stated that China is facing a complex economic ordeal, as it must choose between offering more incentives to support the economy, or withdrawing government incentives that fueled the real estate bubble, and risking a deeper economic slowdown that could lead to… Social unrest.
More than 95 percent of China’s population has health insurance, but it only provides basic coverage. About a third of China’s healthcare spending was paid for out-of-pocket by patients in 2020, the latest year for which WHO data is available.
This number is approximately 3 times the share paid by American patients.
“Chinese leaders realize that when people do not have access to affordable health care, it will threaten social stability,” said Winnie Yip, a Harvard professor and expert on Chinese health policy.
Academics who study China’s healthcare industry say that the sector “has become rife with corruption, due to weak oversight and financial pressure on poorly funded hospitals, which leads doctors and administrators to receive bribes to cover their income and bring in more revenue.”
Patients sometimes pay informal sums, known locally as “red envelopes,” to doctors in exchange for faster or higher-quality treatment.
High profit margins on drug sales have also stimulated graft, as drug makers often pay bribes to doctors to persuade them to prescribe more of their products.
2023-09-14 13:08:52
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