China's medical insurance fund achieved a balanced budget in 2024. In fact, it also achieved slight surplus, which will ensure the safety and sustainability of the fund.
A report by Xinhua said that according to the National Healthcare Security Administration (NHSA) a total of 6.7bn outpatient settlements were covered by basic medical insurance in 2024, representing a year-on-year increase of 19%.
A press conference addressed by the NHSA revealed that maternity insurance fund expenditure amounted to CNY143.2bn ($19.5bn) in 2024 -- a 33.9% increase from the previous year.
In 2024 the national medical insurance system recovered CNY27.5bn in funds, identified 2,008 fraudulent insurance institutions, and worked with public security authorities to investigate 3,018 medical insurance fraud cases leading to the arrest of 10,741 suspects.
NHSA official Gu Rong said that part of the recovered funds were retrieved through big data monitoring technology. According to the NHSA, the administration is actively promoting the use of drug traceability codes, which allow relevant departments to quickly and accurately detect fraud involving the misuse of drugs to exploit the insurance system.