Opinion | China’s patients and medical staff pay price when healthcare is corrupt
- A better, more transparent regulatory environment is crucial if China is to instil public confidence in a health system that remains underdeveloped outside main cities
Medical corruption has long been a prime grievance in China. Collusive drug deals between hospital managements and pharmaceutical companies and overcharging of patients are just two examples.
The Covid years were meant to address it through ongoing major reforms. Instead the pandemic prompted the authorities to put badly needed restructuring on hold. They funnelled countless resources into the health sector to support the zero-tolerance Covid strategy.
No expense was spared and there was relatively little supervision. Now, technically, the pandemic may not be over. But the day of reckoning for the profiteers has dawned.
Anti-corruption officers have investigated more than 160 hospital bosses as Beijing targets the medical sector. State media reports that at least two chairmen of top pharmaceutical firms are also under investigation.
There is more to it than the need to reboot the reform process and instil public confidence in a health system that remains underdeveloped outside the main cities.
The country’s leadership is concerned about the weak momentum of economic growth. Domestic consumption is one area where the government can give the economy a boost.