Health in China
What kind of healthcare system does China have?
Most healthcare in China is provided by the government through a system of health insurance such as the work-based scheme Basic Medical Insurance. There are charges for some services.
Health insurance is funded in different ways, based on where people live (mostly paid for by government subsidies), or who they work for (paid for by workers and their employers). Some healthcare is paid for by people directly.
As a result funding can be very different and services can be of a much lower standard in poorer areas and for people with lower incomes. A lack of training, education and funding has meant family doctors, local clinics and medical centres have struggled compared to better funded hospitals.
Funding for healthcare has been based on treating disease. Only recently has the focus shifted to public health, aiming to prevent illness and promote healthier living.
More recently, the government launched Healthy China 2020. This is a plan to provide universal healthcare coverage for all Chinese people. The Chinese government have allocated billions more in spending to support this plan.
What are obesity rates like in China?
Obesity is a relatively new problem in China. Changes in lifestyle choices have led to more people eating fast food or exercising less.
In 2020 it was estimated that more that 50% of the population are classified as overweight, of whom 16.4% are obese.
Rising obesity is a problem for the government. Illnesses such as diabetes have become more widespread.
The Chinese government claim to be tackling the obesity crisis by:
- training more health nutritionists
- providing greater health education in schools and workplaces
- encouraging schools to improve the health of school lunches
Some health experts claim there needs to be better labelling of food packaging and a ban on certain types of advertising to promote healthier eating.