BEIJING, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- A national conference on health was held in Beijing from Oct. 12 to 13. Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), attended the conference and delivered an important speech. He stressed that the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030) is crucial to achieving the goal of building a Healthy China by 2035. China must remain firmly committed to the path of health development with Chinese characteristics and implement guidelines for the health work in the new era. The country should build on its strengths, consolidate foundations, address shortcomings and shore up weak links to promote high-quality development of the health system, continuously improve the health of the people and ensure decisive progress in advancing the Healthy China Initiative.
Li Qiang made concluding remarks at the conference, which was also attended by Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang and Li Xi.
Xi noted that people's health is a key indicator of a prosperous nation and a strong country. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC in 2012, the CPC Central Committee has made safeguarding people's health a strategic priority in the country's development. It has established guidelines for the health work in the new era, and made major decisions and arrangements for building a Healthy China. These efforts have led to the development of the world's largest systems for medical services, traditional medicine, disease prevention and control, and healthcare security, marking historic achievements and all-round progress in the health sector.
We aim to build a Healthy China where balanced, inclusive, high-quality and efficient health services are ensured, Xi said, adding that the country should have strong capacities in health management, disease prevention and control, medical services, medical insurance support, pharmaceutical innovation and talent development, so as to effectively meet people's ever-growing health needs and ensure sustained and steady improvements in key health indicators.
Xi said that the health sector plays an overarching and foundational role, and it is necessary to steadfastly implement a strategy that prioritizes health. Safeguarding people's health must be factored into all policies and reflected in every aspect of work. In formulating plans, designing policies, evaluating projects, and carrying out construction, the impact on people's health must always be given top priority, Xi said.
Emphasizing that prevention is the most cost-effective and efficient health strategy, Xi urged meticulous efforts to strengthen foundational work concerning public health and healthcare and address health issues at their source, so as to lay a solid foundation for the health of the entire population. He said it is imperative to guide the public in developing a correct understanding of health and engaging in effective self-care and health management. Young people should be encouraged to develop good study and lifestyle habits and achieve well-rounded development in terms of moral grounding, intellectual capability, physical vigor, aesthetic sensibility and work skills. Efforts should be made to create a favorable ecological, working and living environment, encourage and support fitness for all and healthy leisure activities, and strengthen food safety oversight to ensure that every bite of food is safe. Xi also said the disease prevention and control system must be improved to ensure that no large-scale epidemics occur.
Xi noted that comprehensively improving medical services is a key task in building a Healthy China. It is essential to advance a program aimed at enhancing primary-level healthcare, optimize the functions and structural layout of healthcare institutions, and promote tiered diagnosis and treatment, so that people can readily access quality medical care close to home. It is necessary to strengthen comprehensive prevention and control of chronic diseases, and improve whole-chain services covering prevention, treatment, rehabilitation and management. Mechanisms for the inheritance, innovation, and development of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) should be improved to enhance integrated development of TCM and Western medicine. Xi called for efforts to strengthen basic research and original innovation in the health sector, facilitate the translation of scientific and technological achievements into practical applications, and expand and strengthen the health industry. He also said it is necessary to enhance the patient experience, and continuously improve public access to and satisfaction with healthcare services.
Xi stressed that reform is a strong driving force for the development of the health sector, and that the coordinated development and regulation of medical services, medical insurance and pharmaceuticals should be the primary focus of reforming the health system. Efforts must be made to fully implement the reform plan for public health and medical institutions, deepen public hospital reform with a commitment to their public-welfare nature, and provide greater support for the running of community-level healthcare facilities in counties and districts. Measures should be taken to establish a multi-tiered healthcare security system, with optimized policies on centralized procurement of drugs and consumables, medical insurance payments and fund utilization, so as to ensure the safe operation of insurance funds and the sound operation of hospitals, and keep healthcare expenses within an affordable range for the public. Efforts must be made to improve mechanisms for ensuring the supply and management of medicines, refine the national system of essential medicines, and strengthen oversight of pharmaceutical quality and safety.
Xi noted that safeguarding people's health requires a strong contingent of management and healthcare professionals. It is necessary to select and appoint competent leadership teams at all levels of health authorities and healthcare institutions, their principal heads in particular, and strive to build a medical workforce that is sufficient in number, well-structured, and highly qualified. He also stressed enhancing work ethics and conduct, fostering a sound professional ethos, and promoting a social atmosphere of respect for medical professionals and high regard for the health profession.
Xi stressed that health for all is a shared aspiration of humanity. It is necessary to actively advance the building of a global community of health for all, join hands to address major challenges in the health sector, and continuously improve the health and well-being of people in all countries. Efforts should be made to deepen Belt and Road cooperation in health, strengthen and innovate China's health-related foreign assistance, and tell the story of a Healthy China well to further build international consensus.
In his concluding remarks, Li Qiang said General Secretary Xi's important speech provides profound answers to a series of fundamental, directional, and overarching issues concerning health work. With great ideological, strategic, and guiding significance, the speech charts the course and provides essential guidelines for advancing China's health sector in the new era and on the new journey. Li called for actions to earnestly study and deeply understand the speech, implement it fully and without compromise, enhance consciousness in both thought and action, and unswervingly follow the path of health development with Chinese characteristics.
Li stressed the needs to firmly establish a health-first approach to promote the coordinated development of people's health and economic and social progress; uphold the public-welfare nature of basic medical and health services to consolidate the foundation of health for all; place equal emphasis on ensuring basic services and improving quality to better meet people's diverse health needs; and deepen reform, innovation, opening up, and cooperation to continuously boost the driving force and vitality for the health sector's development.
We must focus on the pain points and bottlenecks in the health sector, and give priority to addressing the pressing difficulties and problems that concern the people most, Li said. Vigorous efforts should be made to prevent and control major diseases, advance the development of the tiered diagnosis and treatment system, improve people's experience of seeking and receiving medical services, build a multi-tiered healthcare security system, leverage the unique strengths of traditional Chinese medicine, improve health services for the elderly and children, and promote the empowerment of the medical and health sector by science and technology, so as to lay a solid foundation for building a Healthy China.
Members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and members of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, vice chairperson of the CMC, leading officials of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, state councilors, the procurator-general of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, and leading officials of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference attended the meeting.
Also present at the meeting were leading officials of provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government, cities specifically designated in the state plan, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, leading officials from relevant central Party and government departments, people's organizations, some state-owned enterprises directly administered by the central government, and relevant departments of the CMC, as well as representatives of experts and scholars.■
