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In the 1990s， special medical services tar- geting foreigners and high-ranking officials were first offered in China’s public hospitals. Benefits such as retaining specialty doctors for operations， full-course hospital care， access to experts’ outpatient clinic services and more were all offered at a higher price. Today， these high-end services are no longer limited to VIPs and the well-off. Ordinary people who can afford the expenses can also request such services， bringing huge revenues to public hospitals.
As part of China’s ongoing medical industry reform， the Beijing Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning has recently decided to reduce access to special medical services in public hospitals， while plans are also underway in Shanghai to do the same.
When Beijing announced its decision， however， many in the medical industry and beyond questioned whether this much-debated luxury should be completely removed from public hospitals or continue uninterrupted. The following are excerpts of opinions：
Mao Qun’an （www.cnfol.com）： Many local public health institutions are proposing a narrowing of special medical services. Yet numerous reasons remain for public hospitals to offer these services， the least of which is a current state requirement to make them available. Today， China’s medical and health service sectors are developing fast. It’s thus hoped that social organizations will become increasingly involved in the provision of special medical care， too. When this happens， public hospitals should be able to downsize the scale and breadth of their niche medical services. In places where quality， socially funded care is readily available， public hospitals could do away with these services entirely. This will be one of the key questions debated in the upcoming medical industry reforms： When special medical services are no longer within the sphere of their work， can public hospitals afford to spend more time improving basic medical and healthcare services？
Wang Guoqiang （www.cnfol.com）： As such a large and populous nation， it cannot be expected of our public hospitals alone to provide the wide variety of services needed by the public； it’s necessary for social groups to get involved as well. Public hospitals are set up to meet the requirements to cover basic medical needs， while special medical services are intended for socially organized or privately owned health care institutions. Yet the whole country’s medical resources should be distributed in such a way that people with different demands are provided easy and equal access to corresponding medical services. Currently， the level of basic care available at clinics open to the public is entirely dependent on the country’s financial capability. Healthcare needs are infinitely diversified， however， and can sometimes require a whole network of different medical institutions to effectively treat. The pertinent approach now is to create the proper conditions—in terms of policies， legislation， and organizations—to set up a multi-layer medical service system that can provide affordable care across the entire spectrum of medical needs.
Liao Xinbo （Economic Information Daily）： First answer these questions： For whom are public hospitals are set up？ Are they not state assets， created to ensure equal access to medical services across the whole of China？ If the latter is true， it’s improper for these public facilities to provide luxury services to a minority of wealthy patients. As per the first query， if limited high-end medical resources are reserved for a small few， it goes against the very tenet of public hospitals to serve the people. Special medical services are actually harming the interests and well-being of the vast majority of the society.
The government’s responsibility in medical industry reform is to make hospital treatment available and accessible to a wider slice of society and to relax control on private medical sectors. It is not to stand idly by while economic status continues to decide who can afford which doctor or surgeon. The time has come to cut special medical services in public hospitals.
Wang Zhiguo （Economic Information Daily）： By virtue of being privately owned， many for-profit hospitals have accumulated vast experience in providing high-end medical services. Public hospitals， however， should first strive to enhance basic healthcare for ordinary people in an affordable and accessible fashion， in lieu of catering to the whims of a few.
High-end services such as plastic surgery， special diets during hospitalization， and even on-site childcare in public hospitals have eaten up too many resources and only increase the difficulty of seeing a qualified doctor. Leave the“boutique healthcare” and special medical services to private clinics， and the public hospitals to those most in need.
Zhao Jiancheng （Beijing Business Today）： While there is still no clear distinction between public and private hospitals’ obligations， the question of whether to retain or phase out special medical services in public hospitals should be answered by market demand. At present， it’s still too early to discontinue premium and special services and transfer the business elsewhere， due to the sheer volume of need. As for private hospitals， the national medical insurance network has yet to cover them. In terms of clinical facilities and doctors’ basic education and experience， private hospitals are still not capable of offering special medical services. This will change with the tide of medical reform and public demand.
Chen Qiguang （Beijing Business Today）： Special medical services are a product of the legal commercialization of public hospitals. If canceled， they will result in major immediate economic losses for these hospitals， and will throw into question the amount of funding necessary to maintain a basic level of functionality. Medical industry reform hopes to redefine the responsibilities of both private and public hospitals， and to separate healthcare services from the sale of medicine in the latter. Such sales are also an important source of revenue for public hospitals.
Today， the government has to provide more financial support than ever for public medical needs due to the expansion of health insurance in public hospitals. If the profitable special medical services are removed from these hospitals， will the monetary subsidies provided by the government be sufficient to keep them functional and continue supporting the expanding insurance network？
Wu Shuai （Yanzhao Metropolis Daily）： Not every institution or organization in a society should necessarily operate in commercial mode. Like government organs， public hospitals ought not to focus on profitability while making decisions， lest they price out the members of the public who most need their services.
For this reason， special medical services are certain to destroy social equality. Public hospitals are meant to provide equally priced medical services of even quality to all patients， whereas specialty treatment diverts public resources to serve a select few. Lured by huge profits， however， even a strong public backlash against special medical services cannot prevent public
hospitals from instituting these programs.
Thus， recent years have seen the meteoric rise of special medical services in many public hospitals. In the Women and Children’s Medical Center at the Guangzhou Women and Children’s Hospital， those able and willing to pay 3，000 yuan （$484） a day for “five-star delivery room service” are also able to select the personal obstetrician most to their liking. Highly skilled doctors are already rare resources in public hospitals， yet special medical services make it even more difficult for ordinary people to get adequate treatment from practiced physicians.
To many， it’s welcome news that public hospitals may no longer be offering VIP treatment following upcoming regulatory changes in the industry. Expensive special services should be the business of private hospitals only. Private healthcare institutions are better able， too， to compete with one another. They are able to advertise directly to the populace， offer better deals on elongated hospital stays， and are not required to treat thousands upon thousands of injuries and illnesses on a daily basis. For those with rare or chronic illnesses， private clinics can even provide more innovative or expensive treatments. But for the majority of the Chinese people， public hospitals need to be even-handed and readily accessible places. Regardless of income， we all need to visit the hospital sometimes.
As part of China’s ongoing medical industry reform， the Beijing Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning has recently decided to reduce access to special medical services in public hospitals， while plans are also underway in Shanghai to do the same.
When Beijing announced its decision， however， many in the medical industry and beyond questioned whether this much-debated luxury should be completely removed from public hospitals or continue uninterrupted. The following are excerpts of opinions：
Mao Qun’an （www.cnfol.com）： Many local public health institutions are proposing a narrowing of special medical services. Yet numerous reasons remain for public hospitals to offer these services， the least of which is a current state requirement to make them available. Today， China’s medical and health service sectors are developing fast. It’s thus hoped that social organizations will become increasingly involved in the provision of special medical care， too. When this happens， public hospitals should be able to downsize the scale and breadth of their niche medical services. In places where quality， socially funded care is readily available， public hospitals could do away with these services entirely. This will be one of the key questions debated in the upcoming medical industry reforms： When special medical services are no longer within the sphere of their work， can public hospitals afford to spend more time improving basic medical and healthcare services？
Wang Guoqiang （www.cnfol.com）： As such a large and populous nation， it cannot be expected of our public hospitals alone to provide the wide variety of services needed by the public； it’s necessary for social groups to get involved as well. Public hospitals are set up to meet the requirements to cover basic medical needs， while special medical services are intended for socially organized or privately owned health care institutions. Yet the whole country’s medical resources should be distributed in such a way that people with different demands are provided easy and equal access to corresponding medical services. Currently， the level of basic care available at clinics open to the public is entirely dependent on the country’s financial capability. Healthcare needs are infinitely diversified， however， and can sometimes require a whole network of different medical institutions to effectively treat. The pertinent approach now is to create the proper conditions—in terms of policies， legislation， and organizations—to set up a multi-layer medical service system that can provide affordable care across the entire spectrum of medical needs.
Liao Xinbo （Economic Information Daily）： First answer these questions： For whom are public hospitals are set up？ Are they not state assets， created to ensure equal access to medical services across the whole of China？ If the latter is true， it’s improper for these public facilities to provide luxury services to a minority of wealthy patients. As per the first query， if limited high-end medical resources are reserved for a small few， it goes against the very tenet of public hospitals to serve the people. Special medical services are actually harming the interests and well-being of the vast majority of the society.
The government’s responsibility in medical industry reform is to make hospital treatment available and accessible to a wider slice of society and to relax control on private medical sectors. It is not to stand idly by while economic status continues to decide who can afford which doctor or surgeon. The time has come to cut special medical services in public hospitals.
Wang Zhiguo （Economic Information Daily）： By virtue of being privately owned， many for-profit hospitals have accumulated vast experience in providing high-end medical services. Public hospitals， however， should first strive to enhance basic healthcare for ordinary people in an affordable and accessible fashion， in lieu of catering to the whims of a few.
High-end services such as plastic surgery， special diets during hospitalization， and even on-site childcare in public hospitals have eaten up too many resources and only increase the difficulty of seeing a qualified doctor. Leave the“boutique healthcare” and special medical services to private clinics， and the public hospitals to those most in need.
Zhao Jiancheng （Beijing Business Today）： While there is still no clear distinction between public and private hospitals’ obligations， the question of whether to retain or phase out special medical services in public hospitals should be answered by market demand. At present， it’s still too early to discontinue premium and special services and transfer the business elsewhere， due to the sheer volume of need. As for private hospitals， the national medical insurance network has yet to cover them. In terms of clinical facilities and doctors’ basic education and experience， private hospitals are still not capable of offering special medical services. This will change with the tide of medical reform and public demand.
Chen Qiguang （Beijing Business Today）： Special medical services are a product of the legal commercialization of public hospitals. If canceled， they will result in major immediate economic losses for these hospitals， and will throw into question the amount of funding necessary to maintain a basic level of functionality. Medical industry reform hopes to redefine the responsibilities of both private and public hospitals， and to separate healthcare services from the sale of medicine in the latter. Such sales are also an important source of revenue for public hospitals.
Today， the government has to provide more financial support than ever for public medical needs due to the expansion of health insurance in public hospitals. If the profitable special medical services are removed from these hospitals， will the monetary subsidies provided by the government be sufficient to keep them functional and continue supporting the expanding insurance network？
Wu Shuai （Yanzhao Metropolis Daily）： Not every institution or organization in a society should necessarily operate in commercial mode. Like government organs， public hospitals ought not to focus on profitability while making decisions， lest they price out the members of the public who most need their services.
For this reason， special medical services are certain to destroy social equality. Public hospitals are meant to provide equally priced medical services of even quality to all patients， whereas specialty treatment diverts public resources to serve a select few. Lured by huge profits， however， even a strong public backlash against special medical services cannot prevent public
hospitals from instituting these programs.
Thus， recent years have seen the meteoric rise of special medical services in many public hospitals. In the Women and Children’s Medical Center at the Guangzhou Women and Children’s Hospital， those able and willing to pay 3，000 yuan （$484） a day for “five-star delivery room service” are also able to select the personal obstetrician most to their liking. Highly skilled doctors are already rare resources in public hospitals， yet special medical services make it even more difficult for ordinary people to get adequate treatment from practiced physicians.
To many， it’s welcome news that public hospitals may no longer be offering VIP treatment following upcoming regulatory changes in the industry. Expensive special services should be the business of private hospitals only. Private healthcare institutions are better able， too， to compete with one another. They are able to advertise directly to the populace， offer better deals on elongated hospital stays， and are not required to treat thousands upon thousands of injuries and illnesses on a daily basis. For those with rare or chronic illnesses， private clinics can even provide more innovative or expensive treatments. But for the majority of the Chinese people， public hospitals need to be even-handed and readily accessible places. Regardless of income， we all need to visit the hospital sometimes.