Ten Ministries Issue 22 Key Measures to Promote Sustainable, Healthy, and Regulated Development of Private Healthcare Institutions

VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) has learned that on June 12, ten departments—including the National Health Commission, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the National Healthcare Security Administration, and the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission—jointly issued a landmark policy document on private healthcare provision, titled “Opinions on Promoting the Sustained, Healthy, and Regulated Development of Private Medical Institutions” (hereinafter referred to as the “Opinions”).

Socially operated medical institutions (hereinafter referred to as “socially operated medicine”) are an important component of China’s healthcare service system and a vital force in meeting the diverse healthcare needs of various population groups while expanding the overall supply of medical services for society.

The CPC Central Committee and the State Council attach great importance to the development of privately run medical institutions. In recent years, a series of policy measures have been introduced to continuously deepen reforms and improve the environment for operating medical institutions, yielding positive results. Nevertheless, challenges persist, including inadequate implementation of policies, imperfect regulatory frameworks, and low overall social trust. To deepen the reform of streamlining administration, delegating power, improving regulation, and upgrading services; to promote the implementation of the principle that “entry is permitted unless explicitly prohibited”; to reduce administrative approvals to the maximum extent possible; and to eliminate various regulations and practices that hinder fair competition, thereby addressing key and difficult issues and further promoting the sustained, healthy, and standardized development of privately run medical institutions, the following opinions are hereby proposed with the approval of the State Council.

In November 2018, General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over a symposium on private enterprises and delivered an important speech. He fully affirmed the significant status and role of the private economy, conducted an in-depth analysis of the difficulties and challenges currently facing its development, and proposed six measures to support the growth and strengthening of the private sector, thereby clearly demonstrating the firm determination and unequivocal stance of the CPC Central Committee in supporting the development of the private economy. As a major form of private economic activity within the healthcare sector and an integral component of the medical service system, privately run healthcare institutions have played a vital role in meeting the multi-level and diversified health service needs of the public and in promoting economic and social development.

The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have always attached great importance to the healthy development of privately run medical institutions. In particular, since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, a series of policy measures have been issued to continuously deepen reforms and optimize the policy environment, yielding significant results. By the end of 2018, the number of privately run medical institutions reached 459,000, accounting for 46% of the total; the number of privately run hospitals reached 21,000, representing 63.5%; and the proportions of beds, personnel, and patient visits in privately run medical institutions continued to grow steadily.

However, it must also be recognized that the overall service capacity of non-public medical institutions remains relatively low, with shortcomings in medical technology, disciplinary expertise, service quality, and brand reputation. In some regions, policy implementation is inadequate and non-standardized, and regulatory oversight is imperfect. There is an urgent need to further refine policy measures and strengthen efforts to encourage, support, and promote the standardized development of non-public medical institutions.

The document thoroughly implements the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important speech at the symposium on private enterprises and Premier Li Keqiang’s key directives on promoting the development of socially operated medical institutions. Based on the actual conditions of this sector, it adheres to a problem- and demand-oriented approach, with the deepening of “decentralization, control, and service” reforms as the main thread. It proposes 22 policy measures across six areas, including strengthening government support and streamlining approval services.

Part I: Strengthen Government Support for Socially Operated Medical Institutions.These include four measures: expanding the space for privately operated medical institutions, increasing land supply, promoting government procurement of services, and implementing preferential tax policies. The requirements stipulate adherence to the healthcare service system planning guidelines during the “13th Five-Year Plan” period, strictly controlling the number and scale of public hospitals, and reserving ample room for the development of privately operated medical institutions.

When arranging the annual supply plan for state-owned construction land, localities with insufficient medical facilities must allocate and prioritize land for healthcare purposes in their land supply plans. In accordance with the principle of fair competition and merit-based selection, support shall be provided for the purchase of services from privately run primary healthcare institutions. For-profit private healthcare entities, including small-scale medical institutions such as clinics, may enjoy tax preferential policies applicable to small and micro enterprises in accordance with relevant regulations.

Part II: Advancing the “decentralization, regulation, and service” reform to streamline market access approval services.The measures include improving the efficiency of access approval, standardizing review and evaluation, further relaxing planning restrictions, and piloting the record-filing management system for clinics. All localities are required to issue implementation methods for optimizing cross-departmental joint approval for privately operated medical institutions at the provincial, municipal, and county levels by the end of 2019. Support and encouragement shall be provided for privately operated medical institutions to participate in hospital accreditation. The government imposes no planning restrictions on the total volume and spatial layout of privately operated medical institutions within a region. Pilot programs for the record-filing management of clinics will be launched in ten cities, including Beijing.

Part III: Division of Labor and Collaboration Between Public Medical Institutions and Private Healthcare ProvidersThree measures are included: leveraging the leading role of tertiary public hospitals, exploring diverse models of cooperation among medical institutions, and expanding talent services. All regions shall improve the grid-based layout of medical consortia, into which privately operated medical institutions may choose to join. Support is provided for privately operated medical institutions to cooperate with public hospitals in clinical services, discipline development, and personnel training. The system of electronic registration for physician and nurse practice licenses shall be fully implemented.

Part IV: Optimizing Operational Management Services. This includes four measures: optimizing verification services, improving professional title evaluation, enhancing clinical services and academic standards, and strengthening training efforts.Health administrative departments shall verify and validate medical institutions in accordance with laws and regulations, with a focus on reviewing their medical service capabilities and quality of care. Professional technical personnel in privately run medical institutions shall participate in professional title evaluations on an equal footing with their counterparts in public medical institutions, without being subject to position ratio restrictions. The selection of entities to undertake medical research projects shall adhere to the principles of openness, equality, and merit-based selection; no restrictions shall be imposed on the nature of the medical institutions proposed as project undertakers. For relevant professional services and talent training programs conducted by local governments using fiscal funds or organized in the name of health administrative departments at all levels, quotas shall be provided equally to all eligible medical institutions.

Part V: Improve Medical Insurance Support Policies. This includes three measures: optimizing medical insurance management services, supporting the development of "Internet + Healthcare" in private healthcare institutions, and promoting the growth of commercial health insurance.Designated medical institutions for basic medical insurance and other social security programs are subject to dynamic management, with more eligible private healthcare providers being included in the designated network. Policies on pricing and medical insurance reimbursement for internet-based diagnosis and treatment services have been formulated and issued. Commercial insurance institutions are encouraged to collaborate with private healthcare providers to develop diversified and personalized health insurance products that complement basic medical insurance.

Part VI: Improving the Comprehensive Regulatory System.Four measures are implemented, including enforcing departmental regulatory responsibilities, strengthening medical quality and safety management, establishing and improving the credit system, and leveraging the self-disciplinary role of industry organizations. Penalties for violations in the medical industry must be intensified. Comprehensive use of daily supervision and administration, verification of medical institutions, periodic assessment of physicians, and scoring management of improper practice behaviors shall be employed to strengthen the evaluation and regulation of medical practice activities. Relevant penalty information shall be uniformly incorporated into the National Credit Information Sharing Platform to form public credit records available for free access. National and local medical social organizations shall equally admit private medical institutions and their medical personnel, ensuring equal treatment.

The following are the main contents of the “Opinions”:

(1) Expand the space for non-public medical services. Implement the planning requirements for the healthcare service system during the "13th Five-Year Plan" period, strictly control the number and scale of public hospitals, and reserve sufficient development space for non-public medical institutions. When adding or adjusting healthcare resources, local authorities should give priority to having social forces establish or operate relevant medical institutions.

Social forces in areas with scarce medical resources andShortage Specialties Including Rehabilitation, Nursing, and Mental HealthFor non-profit medical institutions established by social forces, local governments may provide venue or rental subsidies and other support policies on par with those offered to public medical institutions. Standardize and guide the establishment of such institutions by social forces.Rehabilitation medical centers, nursing centers, health examination centers, ophthalmic hospitals, women’s and children’s hospitals, and other medical institutions, as well as independently established medical institutions such as medical testing laboratories, pathology diagnostic centers, medical imaging centers, and hemodialysis centers that are operated in a chain or group-based manner., strengthen standardized management and quality control to enhance the level of homogenization. (The National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Finance, the National Health Commission, and other departments shall work with local authorities to ensure implementation.)

(2) Expand the supply of land for construction. When arranging the annual supply plan for state-owned construction land, localities with insufficient medical facilities shall implement and prioritize the allocation of land for medical and health purposes in their land supply plans. Social forces may obtain the right to use land for medical and health purposes through government allocation, negotiated transfer, leasing, and other methods. Where there is only one intended user for newly supplied land for medical and health purposes within the reasonable period for public disclosure of transfer information, the land may be supplied through negotiation in accordance with the law.

With the consent of the statutory rights holders of land and housing, as well as other property owners, necessary renovations may be carried out on vacant commercial, office, industrial, and other properties for use in establishing medical institutions. In such cases, transitional policies may apply, allowing the land to continue being used according to its original purpose and type of rights for a period of five years. However, this does not apply if the original contract for paid land use or the allocation decision explicitly prohibits changing the land use, or if changing the land use results in the government reclaiming the land use rights. (The Ministry of Natural Resources, the National Health Commission, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, are responsible for implementation.)

(3) Promote government procurement of services. Innovate the methods by which the government provides public health services, and further intensify government procurement of such services. All localities shall formulate implementation measures for government procurement of medical and health services by the end of 2019, specifying details regarding the entities responsible for procurement, scope of services, modalities, procedures, and supervision and management.

In accordance with the principle of fair competition and merit-based selection, support shall be provided for purchasing services from privately run primary healthcare institutions to offer family doctor contracting and relevant public health services to community residents, and to facilitate resident access through services such as elderly care, home hospital beds, and house-call medical consultations. (The National Health Commission, the Ministry of Finance, and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(4) Implement preferential tax policies. For-profit private medical institutions, including small-scale facilities such as clinics, may enjoy preferential tax policies for small and micro enterprises in accordance with relevant regulations. Private medical institutions may apply for recognition as high-tech enterprises and enjoy corresponding tax incentives in accordance with relevant regulations. (The Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, the State Taxation Administration, and other departments shall work with local governments to ensure implementation.)

(V) Improve the efficiency of market access approval. All localities shall, in accordance with the requirements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council for deepening the reform to streamline administration, delegate power, improve regulation, and upgrade services (the “Fang Guan Fu” reform), issue implementation measures by the end of 2019 at the provincial, municipal, and county levels to optimize cross-departmental coordinated approval for privately operated medical institutions. These measures shall clarify the working mechanism under which the first window receiving an application for the establishment of a medical institution assumes responsibility for cross-departmental coordination, and specify time limits for each stage of the approval process.Strengthen the Use of Information Technology to Promote Information Sharing and Coordination in Departmental Approval Processes, thereby reducing the administrative burden on regulated entities. Medical institutions with fewer than 20 beds or those having minimal environmental impact and thus exempt from environmental impact assessment may be subject to a filing-based management system using an Environmental Impact Registration Form. By the end of June 2020, all provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government) shall issue supporting policies to streamline the fire protection design review and acceptance procedures for medical facilities of different types. (The National Development and Reform Commission, the National Health Commission, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the State Administration for Market Regulation, and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(VI) Standardize review and evaluation. Health administrative departments at all levels (including traditional Chinese medicine authorities, hereinafter the same) shall accept applications for changes in the classification and diagnostic and treatment subjects of medical institutions in real time in accordance with the law, complete the approval within the statutory time limit, and improve approval efficiency. Information related to the approval process shall be disclosed in accordance with the law, and the expert review results for newly established medical institutions shall be simultaneously sent to the approval department and the applicant. Socially funded medical institutions are supported and encouraged to participate in hospital accreditation reviews; health administrative departments shall promptly accept relevant applications, provide feedback on the review results within three months, and promptly issue accreditation decisions. Socially funded medical institutions shall be incorporated into the control and evaluation system for medical services and medical quality management, so as to continuously improve the level of medical quality and safety in socially funded medical institutions. (The National Health Commission and other departments, together with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(7) Further relax planning restrictions. The government shall not impose planning restrictions on the total quantity and spatial layout of privately run medical institutions within a region. A notification-and-commitment system shall be implemented for the allocation of Class B large-scale medical equipment, and requirements for bed capacity shall be abolished. (The National Health Commission and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(8) Filing-based management of pilot clinics. From 2019 to 2020, in 10 cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Shenyang, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Wuhan, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, and Xi’anPilot Program for Clinic Filing and Management. Chain and group clinics operating across administrative regions in pilot cities shall be uniformly registered with the higher-level health administrative department; those operating across provincial-level administrative divisions shall be separately registered with the health administrative departments of the respective provinces. (The National Health Commission, the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(9) Leverage the leading role of tertiary public hospitals. All regions shall improve the grid-based layout of medical consortia. Private healthcare institutions may choose to join these consortia; those with strong comprehensive capabilities or specialized service capacities may take the lead in establishing medical consortia, thereby encouraging moderate competition. Support public and private healthcare institutions in forming specialized alliances based on the principles of equality and voluntary participation. Support private healthcare institutions in participating in telemedicine collaboration networks to enhance their diagnostic and treatment service capabilities.Support social medical institutions in prioritizing the acceptance of referrals for rehabilitation, nursing, and palliative care services from tertiary public hospitals. This will help reduce average length of stay and operational costs at tertiary hospitals, improve healthcare service efficiency, enable these hospitals to focus on their core medical functions, and establish a rational division of labor among healthcare institutions.。

Localities shall provide support to institutions offering rehabilitation and nursing services in communities, including tax and fee reductions, financial assistance, and preferential pricing for water, electricity, gas, and heating, in accordance with the law.Support the sharing of medical imaging, clinical laboratory, and pathological diagnosis services between tertiary public hospitals and private healthcare institutions., thereby establishing a collaborative healthcare management system involving the entire society; relevant service agreements may serve as the basis for registering diagnostic and treatment specialties for privately operated medical institutions. (The National Health Commission, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Finance, the State Taxation Administration, and other departments shall work with local authorities to ensure implementation.)

(10) Explore diverse models of cooperation among medical institutions. Support collaborations between private and public hospitals in areas such as clinical services, discipline development, and talent training; advocate for pilot programs promoting extensive collaboration, coordination, and mutual support among various types of medical institutions, and establish reasonable mechanisms for division of labor and benefit distribution. Local governments shall issue specific regulations to standardize such collaborations, and relevant departments of the State Council shall strengthen guidance. Guide and regulate the participation of non-governmental entities in the restructuring and reorganization of public hospitals through various forms, and improve supporting policies related to asset bidding, auction, and listing, conversion of personnel status, and valuation of intangible assets involved in the restructuring and reorganization process. (The National Health Commission, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, and other relevant departments, together with local governments, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(11) Expand talent services. Fully implement the electronic registration system for physician and nurse practice licenses. Comprehensively implement the regional registration system for physicians and promote regional registration management for nurses. Develop model templates for employment (labor) contracts between physicians practicing at multiple institutions and their primary medical institutions, as well as model templates for service agreements with other medical institutions. These templates shall reasonably stipulate terms such as practice duration, scheduling, work assignments, medical liability, compensation, and relevant insurance, thereby clarifying the personnel (labor) relationship and the rights and obligations of both parties, so as to support and regulate multi-institutional practice by physicians. Allow eligible on-duty medical personnel and those on unpaid leave to apply for establishing medical institutions. Improve standards for “Internet + Nursing” services and expand the supply of high-quality medical and nursing care services. (The National Health Commission, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(12) Optimize verification services. Health administrative departments shall verify medical institutions in accordance with laws and regulations, with a focus on reviewing medical service capabilities and medical quality. Under the premise of ensuring medical quality and safety, physicians practicing at multiple institutions may be included in the baseline number of physicians for the verification of the medical institutions where they actually practice, based on their actual practice status. Localities with appropriate conditions are encouraged to explore the implementation of phased practice registration for tertiary hospitals and to formulate specific implementation measures. Within the validity period of the approval letter for the establishment of a medical institution, it is permitted to register and operate no less than 60% of the beds required by the basic standards in advance; all approved bed numbers must be registered before the expiration of the approval letter for the establishment of the medical institution. Promote the focus of medical institution verification work on key elements such as medical quality and safety. (The National Health Commission and other relevant departments are responsible for implementation.)

(13) Optimize professional title evaluation. Improve the evaluation system for professional technical titles in the medical field. For physicians applying for senior clinical titles, there shall be no uniform requirements for foreign language proficiency, nor rigid stipulations regarding academic papers or scientific research; instead, emphasis shall be placed on assessing clinical competence and service quality. Professional technical personnel in privately run medical institutions shall participate in professional title evaluation on an equal basis with those in public medical institutions, without being subject to position ratio restrictions. A certain proportion of members from industry organizations representing privately run medical institutions and personnel from such institutions shall be included in the senior professional title evaluation committees for health professions and the medical institution accreditation committees established at the societal level. (The National Health Commission, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(14) Enhance clinical services and academic standards. Beginning in 2019, all regions shall treat eligible medical institutions equally when selecting standardized residency training bases, clinical teaching bases for medical colleges and universities, and promoting the development of clinical service capabilities, while providing appropriate preference to privately operated medical institutions. The selection of entities undertaking medical research projects shall adhere to the principles of openness, equality, and merit-based competition; no restrictions shall be imposed on the nature of medical institutions proposed as project undertakers. (The National Health Commission, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(15) Strengthen training efforts. For relevant professional and talent training programs conducted by local governments using fiscal funds or organized in the name of health administrative departments at all levels, quotas shall be provided on an equal basis to all eligible medical institutions, and this shall serve as a key criterion in the evaluation of such training programs. (The National Health Commission, the Ministry of Finance, and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(16) Optimize medical insurance management services. Designated medical institutions for social security programs, including basic medical insurance, work-related injury insurance, maternity insurance, and medical assistance, shall be subject to dynamic management. More qualified private medical institutions that meet the eligibility criteria shall be included as designated providers, thereby further expanding the coverage of private medical institutions within the medical insurance designated provider network.Socially operated medical institutions may apply for designated status after three months of formal operation, and the timeline for completing the designated assessment shall not exceed three months.。

Healthcare security authorities shall strengthen guidance and provide support and facilitation for healthcare institutions to upgrade their information systems, thereby enabling designated healthcare institutions to deliver services to insured individuals as promptly as possible. For applications that are not approved, the reasons for rejection and required corrective actions must be communicated to the applicant upon expiration of the three-month evaluation period, to facilitate resubmission. Socially operated healthcare institutions designated under the basic medical insurance scheme are encouraged to participate in volume-based procurement of pharmaceuticals through provincial-level centralized drug procurement platforms and engage in independent price negotiations. Healthcare security authorities shall establish reimbursement standards at levels no higher than the prices on the centralized procurement platforms for payment purposes.

All legally established medical institutions may voluntarily apply for designation as providers under the basic medical insurance scheme and for direct settlement of cross-provincial out-of-area medical expenses. The sponsoring entity, operational nature, scale, or accreditation level of a medical institution shall not be used as prerequisite conditions for such designation. Penalties unrelated to medical insurance management and fund utilization shall not be linked to the designation application process. For-profit medical institutions may use compliant invoices as valid vouchers for reimbursement from the medical insurance fund.

Healthcare security authorities shall study and strengthen policy and administrative measures for supervision and law enforcement, continuously improve global budget control management, enhance the scientific rigor and rationality of global budget targets, and safeguard fund security. All localities shall conduct a comprehensive review and standardization of policies governing designated medical institutions under basic medical insurance, adjust and refine policies in accordance with the principle of equal treatment for public medical institutions and privately-run healthcare providers, optimize pre-qualification requirements for designated status, and shorten application waiting and review periods. (The National Healthcare Security Administration, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(17) Support the development of “Internet + Healthcare” by social medical institutions. By the end of September 2019,Formulate and implement pricing policies for internet-based medical consultations and health insurance reimbursement policies to establish a reasonable benefit distribution mechanism.。Encourage public hospitals and private medical institutions to cooperate in providing telemedicine services in accordance with regulations.. Support cross-regional medical collaboration among private healthcare providers through "Internet Plus", withMedical Consortiums Facilitate Horizontal Resource Sharing and Information Interconnectivity. Encourage medical institutions to apply information technologies such as the Internet to expand the scope of medical services and build an integrated healthcare delivery model. Support medical and health institutions, as well as qualified third-party organizations, in establishing internet-based information platforms,Provide telemedicine, health consultation, and health management services. (The National Healthcare Security Administration, the National Health Commission, and other relevant departments shall work with local authorities to ensure implementation.)

(18) Support the development of commercial health insurance. Encourage commercial insurance institutions and private medical providers to jointly develop diversified and personalized health insurance products, forming a complement to basic medical insurance.Encourage commercial insurance institutions to participate in the administration of basic medical insurance, ensure effective provision of services for critical illness insurance covering urban and rural residents, and improve the efficiency of fund utilization.. Support the integration of information systems between commercial insurance institutions and privately-run medical facilities to facilitate one-stop direct billing and settlement services for patients with commercial insurance. Encourage commercial insurance institutions to invest in privately-run healthcare. (To be implemented by the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, the National Healthcare Security Administration, the National Health Commission, and other relevant departments.)

(19) Implement departmental supervisory responsibilities. Earnestly implement the principles of “whoever approves shall supervise, and whoever is in charge shall supervise” and “double random, one public.” Health administrative departments and relevant authorities shall strictly fulfill their supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the division of duties among comprehensive regulatory bodies for the healthcare industry.

Health administrative departments at all levels shall strengthen industry supervision and services for privately operated medical institutions, enhance the construction of platforms for complaints and reports regarding healthcare services, increase rewards for reporting illegal activities, improve the quality of industry services and regulatory oversight, and promote the healthy and standardized development of privately operated medical institutions. Illegal pricing practices by medical institutions shall be severely cracked down on. Contractual management of designated medical institutions shall be strengthened, and medical insurance handling agencies shall implement an exit mechanism for medical institutions that violate their agreements.Crack Down on Fraud and Deception to Illegally Obtain Medical Insurance FundsLeverage the role of medical insurance in constraining and supervising medical practices. Increase penalties for violations in the healthcare industry, ensuring that those who commit serious offenses bear substantial costs to create a genuine deterrent. Hold accountable localities and individuals with frequent identified issues, strong public outcry, and ineffective regulatory outcomes. (The National Health Commission, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the National Healthcare Security Administration, and other relevant departments shall work together with local authorities to implement these measures.)

(20) Strengthening the management of medical quality and safety. Comprehensive measures, including routine supervision and administration, verification of medical institutions, periodic assessment of physicians, and a point-based system for recording improper professional conduct, shall be employed to enhance the evaluation and oversight of medical practice activities. Health administrative departments shall incorporate privately operated medical institutions into the medical quality monitoring system, establish and improve information platforms for the supervision of medical services, and implement mechanisms for real-time, end-to-end oversight of medical services. Supervision results shall be promptly feedback to medical institutions and disclosed to the public through appropriate channels. Medical institutions shall establish medical information systems and upload diagnosis and treatment data to the medical service supervision information system in accordance with prescribed regulations and standards. Efforts shall be strengthened to safeguard the security of medical health information and protect personal privacy; illegal buying, selling, or leaking of personal information shall be severely punished in accordance with laws and regulations. (The National Health Commission and other relevant departments, in conjunction with local authorities, shall be responsible for implementation.)

(21) Establish and improve the credit system. Health administrative departments shall, in accordance with the relevant regulations of the State Council, disclose information on penalties imposed on medical institutions and medical personnel within their respective jurisdictions. Establish a credit evaluation system for medical institutions under the medical security framework and an information disclosure system. Penalty-related information from various departments shall be unifiedIncluded in the National Credit Information Sharing Platform to form public credit records available for free public accessAmong these, for medical institutions registered and established with the market regulation departments, all relevant departments shall centrally consolidate information on administrative penalties imposed on such institutions into the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System in accordance with regulations, and disclose such information to the public as required by law. A memorandum for joint disciplinary action shall be formulated and implemented to impose lifelong industry bans on entities with serious breaches of trust, in accordance with the law. (The National Health Commission, the National Development and Reform Commission, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the National Healthcare Security Administration, and other relevant departments shall be responsible for implementation within their respective scopes of duty.)

(22) Leverage the self-regulatory role of industry organizations. Industry organizations such as the Chinese Medical Association shall assist competent authorities in carrying out relevant work, improve industry standards, conduct evaluations of medical quality and service capacity of medical institutions, make evaluation results public to safeguard industry credibility. National and local medical-related social organizations shall equally admit privately run medical institutions and their medical personnel, ensuring equal treatment. Launch demonstration initiatives for privately run medical institutions. (The National Health Commission, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and other departments shall be responsible for implementation in accordance with their respective duties.)

All regions and departments must attach great importance to this matter, prioritize the development of privately run medical institutions, strengthen communication and coordination, foster close collaboration, promptly formulate or improve supporting measures, refine work initiatives, and ensure the full implementation of policies. Localities are encouraged to intensify their exploration of policy reforms for privately run medical institutions, with the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the National Health Commission (NHC) publishing typical case studies of local best practices. The NHC, NDRC, and other relevant departments shall conduct supervisory inspections and follow-up analyses of local implementation efforts to ensure that all policy measures achieve tangible results.

Source: Bureau of Medical Administration and Hospital Management