Retirees no Anxiety over Medical CostLocal retired workers in Shanghai will not have to worry about high medical costs when a new medical mutual-aid insurance program is put into operation later this month.The program is another important supplement to the city's current medical insurance system implemented last December. Though the new medical system is functioning smoothly, some patients feel hospitalization costs are still too high. Though retirees pay a smaller share of their medical costs than other patients, they still face heavy medical bills because of their age, infirmities and lower incomes. Local doctors estimate that the incidence of diseases among retirees is twice that among working people, and most of them suffer from serious and chronic diseases. After joining the mutual-aid program, retirees will be eligible for reimbursements of from 50 to 70 per cent of their medical costs. And reimbursement cap is 40,000 yuan (US$4,800) per year. "This will greatly lighten their economic burden and ensure their health care service," said Fu Xiaolong, director of the Social Guarantee Department of the Shanghai Trade Union Council. Every retiree, whether healthy or ill can join the mutual-aid program by paying a very low medical insurance premium of 50 yuan (US$6) per year. Initiated by the local Trade Union Council, the program is expected to cover at least 1 million retired workers of the 2.6 million total, in the initial phase. "Different from commercial insurance, the mutual-aid program is non-profit and collects money from the general population to help those in need," Fu explained. In addition to the insurance premium, the program gets funds from the government and social welfare lotteries. The local government has taken measures to solve problems quickly to push forward the implementation of the new system. About 1.5 million local on-the-job workers have already been benefiting from a similar mutual aid medical insurance program since January this year. And the members are expected to reach 4 million. Top officials promised to map out another supplement covering pregnancy costs for women this year during a meeting of the local People's Congress this week. Source: China Daily |
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