Chinese premier pledges to advance medical reform

BEIJING -- Premier Li Keqiang on Tuesday noted the priorities in the country's medical reform, including enhancing disease prevention and increasing accessibility of medical services.

The government will work hard to ease the difficulties of visiting the hospital and reduce the medical cost, Li said in an instruction to a national conference on medical reform held in Beijing Tuesday.

Traditionally patients will line up in front of a hospital counter to register to see the doctor. Now the government will encourage them to make an appointment before visiting the hospital.

Li said the government will also push hospitals to share information on medical examinations and facilitate reimbursement of medical costs across the provinces.

Resources will also go to stabilizing medicine prices, developing traditional Chinese medicine, training rural doctors and applying digital technologies in medical services.

When addressing the conference, Vice Premier Sun Chunlan urged the health departments to work to form a multilevel medical service network, deepen reforms of public hospitals and enhance COVID-19 response and vaccination.