Free Health Care in China at Points of Use？

第183场兴泉全球健康系列讲坛

内容概要

Free healthcare has been a hot debate for decades in China. This seminar defines it as free healthcare at points of use, represented by low out-of-pocket payment in national health expenditures. Then it explains how Britain, Germany and the US have achieved almost free healthcare at points of use for all and with OOP less than 15 percent of NHE. Compared to these countries, China needs to find extra resources of about 12 percentage points of NHE to fill in the gap. The speaker’s preliminary guessmates suggest that various wastes in the Chinese health care system could be adequately reallocated for achieving universal coverage in China. In practice, the speaker recommends that free healthcare beginning with primary tier and/or special services such as maternal care.

讲者简介

贡森 Sen Gong
School of Public Affairs
Director of the Centre for International Studies on Development and Governance (CiSDG)
Zhejiang University

Gong Sen, Ph.D., is a special hired Professor as a leading scholar in social science at the School of Public Affairs of Zhejiang University, China. He received his PhD in Social Policy in Sheffield University, UK. He is also the Director of the Centre for International Studies on Development and Governance Research Centre (CiSDG) at Zhejiang and Zhejiang University.

His main research interests include social security, healthcare, employment, and other social policies as well as development. In recent years, he is also working on a number of projects on international development and sustainable development. He is the Lead principal investigator of over 40 major national and international projects funded by UN agencies and World Bank, international development agencies such as DFID and international NGOs such as Save the Children. He has received numerous awards for excellent research at provincial or ministerial levels. He has published over 10 books, including “Improving Social Development, Rebuilding Social Order,” “International Comparison of Welfare Systems and Social Policies,” and “Focusing on People’s Livelihood: Promoting Inclusive Growth Social Policy.” He has published more than one hundred research articles in peer reviewed journals in English and in Chinese. He has over 30 policy briefs on development being accepted by the governments at central and local levels in China.

He is a Co-Chief Editor of the Asian Review of Political Economy, a board member of the Guangdong Qianhai International Affairs Research Institute. He also serves as Chairman of the Social-Legal Committee of the Democratic Progressive Party Central in China.

Prior to coming to Zhejiang University, he worked in the Development Research Centre (DRC) of the State Council as a senior researcher at DDG level for 3-4 research departments and institutes. Throughout his career, he has served on numerous advisory committees and boards, such as for United Nations Committee for Development Policy, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and the Ministry of Health in China. Because of his important contribution to China’s social policy, he is now an expert receiving the special allowance from the State Council which is an honour for leading experts in the country.