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E-mail China.org.cn, May 30, 2024
Hubei Media Group:
Mr. Wang just introduced that over the years, Hubei has annually promoted 10 types of projects to ensure success in delivering prosperity and benefits to the people. Personally, I am more concerned about public health issues. My question is: What progress has Hubei made in recent years in building "Healthy Hubei?" Thanks.
Wang Zhonglin:
Thank you for your concern. I will invite Mr. Wei to answer this question.
Wei Shengbin:
In recent years, Hubei has implemented important measures to benefit the people, resolve their difficulties, and win their approval. Several pressing difficulties and problems that matter most to the public have been resolved. We have made every effort to address the critical task of fortifying the public health protection network set by General Secretary Xi Jinping for Hubei, to protect people's lives and health. Remarkable progress has been made in promoting the reform of the disease prevention and control system and strengthening the public health system. Hubei ranked second in the evaluation of the "Healthy China" initiative.
First, we uphold comprehensive medical values and have made new progress in strengthening the public health system. We have worked hard to resolve the problems of difficult, expensive, and complex access to medical services. A health service system covering urban and rural areas is now in place, enhancing collaboration between hospitals and institutions for disease prevention and control. We have doubled our efforts to address weaknesses in the field of public health and launched 1,819 programs with a total investment of over 200 billion yuan. We have focused on expanding medical resources and building high-level national and regional medical centers. The number of tertiary hospitals in Hubei has reached 208, ranking fifth in the country. We have promoted balanced development and have established a medical system at five levels: province, city, county, township, and village. Counties with a population of over 1 million and China's top 100 counties located in Hubei each have at least one Grade-A tertiary hospital, and every village has a clinic. We have trained and deployed 13,000 university-educated doctors to villages, allowing residents to access medical services near their homes.
We adhere to comprehensive health values, and the health of our people has improved. With a focus on five areas — prevention, screening, health management, treatment, and scientific research — we have launched the "323" initiative to tackle significant public health issues. This initiative targets three types of serious diseases, such as cancers; two chronic diseases, like hypertension; and three major public health problems, such as congenital disabilities. Through this initiative, we have provided comprehensive health care across the full life cycle, increasing the public health level by 13.9 percentage points compared to pre-pandemic figures. The rate of premature deaths from major chronic diseases has dropped substantially. More than half of all township-level health centers in Hubei are now equipped to provide emergency clot-busting treatments for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. In the last three years, they have saved the lives of more than 3,900 patients.
Third, by adhering to a comprehensive population approach, we have made new progress in high-quality population development. We focus on policies that promote long-term balanced population development, such as improving incentives for couples having children, reducing the costs of raising and educating children, and upgrading childcare services. Medical expenses related to childbirth are fully covered by funds under unified management in the medical insurance system. More than 90% of county-level maternal and child health centers have reached secondary-level standards in China's three-tier grading system. In the past three years, we have added more than 149,000 childcare spots, reaching 3.41 per 1,000 people, placing us at the forefront nationwide.
We are committed to cultivating a broad industrial perspective and achieving significant advancements in the development of the healthcare sector. As Mr. Wang mentioned earlier, Hubei prioritizes the healthcare industry as one of its trillion-yuan pillar industries. We are continuously advancing the integration of healthcare and elderly care, as well as medical and elderly care services. Moreover, we are vigorously promoting the growth of high-end medical equipment, biopharmaceuticals, and modern health services. Last year, the industry reached a scale of 881 billion yuan, and this year, it is expected to exceed 1 trillion yuan, becoming a solid support for overcoming diseases and protecting health.
That's all from me. Thank you!
