China refines medical bill settlement policy to benefit migrant population

BEIJING -- China has further enhanced the mechanism for cross-provincial on-the-spot settlement of medical bills through basic medical insurance accounts, benefiting more migrant individuals when seeking medical treatment.

Under the current basic medical insurance scheme, rural migrant workers, elderly people who relocate to be with their children, and other migrant individuals are allowed to settle their medical expenses incurred outside their home provinces.

On-the-spot settlement of cross-provincial outpatient medical bills was realized at about 364,400 designated medical institutions nationwide, with over 17.4 million applications for settlement approved during the first three months of 2023, according to figures released by the National Healthcare Security Administration.

There are hospitals designated for cross-provincial settlement of outpatient bills in all county-level areas across China, the administration said.

From January to March, the total number of direct settlements of cross-provincial inpatient medical bills reached 2.1 million, the official figures showed.

China's basic medical insurance schemes provide coverage to approximately 1.36 billion people, with the coverage rate staying above 95 percent of the total population.