The Chinese Government announced on September 11 a raise in medical insurance subsidies for rural residents.

The annual government grant for each participant in the New Rural Cooperative Medical Program will rise from 240 yuan ($39.22) to 280 yuan ($45.75), according to a statement by the National Health and Family Planning Commission.

Under the program, the annual premium paid by individuals will be 70 yuan ($11.44), 20 yuan ($3.27) more than that in 2012.

China launched the rural insurance scheme in 2003 to ensure that the country's rural residents all have access to affordable medical treatment and to reduce poverty induced by medical fees.

The number of people covered by the program has increased from 80 million to more than 800 million, or 99 percent of the country's total rural population, the commission's figures showed.