We expect more cities to introduce the health insurance system that covers all their residents, says an article in Beijing News. The following is an excerpt:

The Beijing labor and social security bureau recently released a document on the implementation of building the healthcare system for severe diseases contracted by urban jobless residents. This document indicates that Beijing becomes the first to realize the full coverage of the health insurance system in the country.

Our country's healthcare system has long been criticized for its narrow coverage. To catch up, the Chinese government has long been dedicated to expanding the coverage of the healthcare system in recent years. In Beijing, residents have several types of health insurance systems such as the healthcare for urban workers, the healthcare for urban jobless and the urban medial rescue. These different systems try to give full coverage of healthcare for all residents in the capital city.

It takes time for us to design a system and put it into practice. Take Beijing for example. The healthcare scheme for urban workers was launched in 2001 and it started to include migrant workers in 2004. Three years later, the children and the elderly both started to enjoy the healthcare facilities. But until that time, the jobless residents, about 470,000 in Beijing, were not protected by any healthcare system.

Now the new system finally makes up for the gap in the healthcare system and takes them into account. What makes it more gratifying is that residents who are supported by the minimum living allowance or the subsidies for living difficulties and residents who are seriously disabled can all join this new system without the need of paying premiums.

Theoretically speaking, the health insurance is aimed at coping with the risks of diseases. Diseases are quite different from the risks of aging, unemployment, childbirth and work accident, for you are not sure when you may contract diseases while you can be more certain about other risks.

Thus, at home and outside, the disease risk is always deemed the number one by the public among economic and social risks. So one thing we still need to consider is whether we should include migrant workers' children into this healthcare system. Their parents are working in Beijing and paying taxes, and it is their right to let their children enjoy the healthcare protection in Beijing.

We hope Beijing can soon include them into the healthcare system. Meanwhile, we hope more cities can follow the example of Beijing and try to cover all residents with healthcare packages.

(China Daily June 20, 2008)