Private hospitals face challenges

A doctor treats a boy at Tianjin New Century Children's Hospital in Tianjin. The hospital, which opened last year, is the first private hospital for children in the city. Yue Yuewei / Xinhua

The Party's decision to increase support for private hospitals presents an opportunity but with challenges, experts say, starting with access to insurance money and limits on doctors' working hours.

The broad policy approved by the Third Plenary Session of the Communist Party of China's 18th Central Committee, which ended on Nov 12, states the government should encourage the growth of medical institutions run by private companies or other NGOs.

Private hospitals are thought to be capable of competing with government-funded hospitals by providing more choices to patients. They can also help relieve pressure on an overburdened government system.

Since 2009, when national health reforms began, the central government and authorities in cities such as Guangzhou and Beijing have called for equal treatment for private hospitals — and even favorable policies that will stimulate their growth.

"The latest decision reiterates and emphasizes this," said Zhu Hengpeng, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Institute of Economics.

He said the Party's decision shows the willingness to conduct market-oriented reform in a health sector dominated by government-funded hospitals.

The Party also said private hospitals should get a slice of public healthcare insurance money, just as government-funded hospitals do.

But a majority of private hospitals operate outside the insurance program, which means their service costs are higher than their government-funded counterparts, Zhu said.

"Insurance managers are concerned there won't be enough money if more hospitals are included in the program," he said.

Mao Tongfa, president of Rensheng Hospital, a private hospital in suburban Beijing, said his hospital sees fewer than 30 patients a day, partly because customers cannot get reimbursement for treatment expenses.