China's medical care expenses to increase

China's medical care expenses are likely to continue to increase at an annual rate of 20 percent in the coming years as private hospitals gain more business opportunities amid the country's medical reforms, officials said.

In 2011, China spent about 2.4 trillion yuan ($375.5 billion) on medical care, an amount up by 400 billion yuan from the previous year. And those expenses are likely to continue showing an annual rate of increase of 20 percent into the near future, according to Lei Haichao, deputy director of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Health.

The rapid increase seen in residents' incomes in recent years is the biggest cause of China's quickly rising medical expenses, said Yao Hong, director-general of the Department of Medical Insurance of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.

Many experts now predict that the country's economic growth is on the verge of slowing and that residents' incomes will not increase as quickly as in the past. If that comes true, it will probably affect the amount of money that can be put toward medical care, Yao added.

Officials say one possible source for additional money for medical care is the income local government's derive from land transfers.

Liu Guoen, of the State Council Medical Reform Committee, said the government plans to increase the amount of money it annually puts toward reforming the medical system by 400 billion yuan.

In the past three years, the government has pledged to put 850 billion yuan toward reforming the country's medical system in the past three years. According to recent statistics, the actual amount spent for that purpose has been 1.2 trillion yuan.

Wu Yangfeng, deputy head of Peking University Clinical Research Institute, encouraged the government to adjust the goals of medical care in China and pay more attention to the treatment of chronic diseases.