20 diseases included in rural disease protection

Since 2002, China has gradually established a new type of rural cooperative medical system, which is guided by government organizations, where farmers participate voluntarily and individuals, groups, and governments raise funds from various sources. At present, the new rural cooperative medical system has covered about 812 million people and the coverage rate is over 98%. This year, the per capita funding for the new rural cooperative medical system has reached 340 yuan, of which government subsidies at all levels have increased to 280 yuan per capita, and the total funding for the new rural cooperative medical system can reach 270 billion yuan.

According to the Ministry of Health, in 2013, the focus of China's rural medical security will shift to major illnesses. 20 kinds of diseases such as lung cancer and gastric cancer are all included in the protection of major diseases. The actual reimbursement rate for hospitalization expenses for patients with serious diseases is not less than 70%, and the maximum can reach 90%.

Reimbursement increased by 5 percentage points

According to the Ministry of Health, this year, the proportion of actual reimbursement for seeking medical treatment for new rural cooperative medical treatment patients will increase by 5 percentage points from about 50% in 2012.

Twenty major diseases included in major disease protection

In 2013, the key task of the new rural cooperative medical system is to expand the coverage of major disease protection, increase the proportion of compensation, and prevent farmers from returning to poverty due to (major) illness.

According to the person in charge of the Ministry of Health, this year, 20 key diseases such as lung cancer will be fully promoted in the province as a unit, and 20 major diseases will be preferentially included in the coverage of major illness insurance in areas where pilots for serious illness insurance have been carried out. Rural cooperatives shall compensate at a proportion of not less than 70%; after the compensation, the individual’s burden will exceed the compensation for critical illness insurance, and then the major illness insurance shall be compensated at a ratio of no less than 50%. After the second compensation, the hard-working farmers will receive an additional 15% of the civil medical assistance fund, so that the total reimbursement ratio can reach 90%.

In addition, the Ministry of Health has established a clinical pathway for 20 major diseases, selected essential medicines, and implemented provincial procurement as a unit to ensure the safety of farmers' major diseases. At the same time, the Ministry of Health requires all local health administrative departments to select the designated medical institutions of the new rural cooperative medical cooperatives with good conditions for diagnosis and treatment, cost control and organization and management as participating institutions for the treatment of major diseases of farmers. In principle, major illnesses should be treated as medical institutions at the county level as far as possible. In complex and difficult cases, the referring hospitals are responsible for referral to tertiary medical institutions.

The Ministry of Health has issued a request that all levels of the new rural cooperative management agencies must simplify and standardize the settlement and reimbursement procedures for major diseases, actively promote the timely settlement and remote settlement of fixed-point medical institutions, and promote the new rural cooperative medical assistance in combination with the actual situation. One-stop "service" to facilitate the timely participation of farmers in the compensation.

â–  Cases

Treatment of 70,000 can be reimbursed 50,000

61-year-old Henan Zhoukou farmer Ma Jiyao had several diseases such as pancreatic cancer and lung cancer. He had just finished surgery at the People's Hospital of Zhengzhou City and spent a total of more than 70,000 yuan. This cost is equivalent to their two-year net income.

According to the previous policy, more than 8,000 yuan of cooperative medical care can be reimbursed 65%. Since this year, the proportion of reimbursement has been greatly improved, from 8,000 to 50,000 can be reimbursed 65%, 5 to 80,000 reimbursement 80%, more than 80,000 can be reimbursed 90%.

The changes in the numbers are real money for farmers. In this serious illness, Ma Jiyao’s medical expenses were reported to be more than 50,000 yuan, and he only spent less than 20,000 yuan.