China will open its healthcare sector wider to foreign investment and expertise, Jiao Yahui, a senior official with the National Health Commission, announced Monday.
Speaking at a press briefing in Beijing, Jiao introduced that the latest moves include allowing qualified foreign doctors and those from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan to open clinics in designated pilot regions. The measures also support short-term practice for overseas medical professionals, with streamlined and simplified approval processes.
These actions fall under a work plan to expand access to China's services sector for foreign investment and professionals, which was released last week by the Ministry of Commerce.
With data security and patient privacy guaranteed, the plan also encourages the joint development and sharing of health and medical databases. It calls for the increased standardization of clinical data and improved sharing between hospitals.
"We expand the pilot programs in the medical field, with the goal of introducing high-quality medical resources. We will also actively prompt commercial health insurance to support overseas-funded medical institutions. During the pilot process, we will also guide these pilot cities to constantly and dynamically sort out and summarize the pilot situation, form replicable and promotable experiences, and make adequate preparations for the further expansion of opening up and policies optimization," said Jiao.
China moves to expand foreign investment in healthcare sector
China takes actions to expand foreign investment in health sector
