Health Care Reform

The Chinese Government on April 6 announced guidelines for an anticipated reform of the country's health care system in a bid to provide "safe, effective, convenient and affordable" health services to urban and rural residents. To achieve this, the government will allocate 850 billion yuan ($124 billion) over the next three years to push through the reform.

The reform aims to establish a solid medical network covering the whole population on the basis of sound public health, medical services, medical insurance and medicine supplies.

The government will step up funding support to public hospitals and grassroots-level clinics and strengthen supervision over the operation of medical institutions.

Publishing in Full Swing

The General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) said on April 6 that it wants to foster the creation of six or seven globally competitive publishing giants with annual revenue of more than 10 billion yuan ($1.46 billion) within three to five years.

According to the announcement, the government will encourage state-owned news organizations and publishers to reorganize as joint-stock companies and strengthen themselves through mergers and acquisitions.

The GAPP also pledged to support the development of private publishing studios and media giants that publish newspapers and magazines overseas.

Major publishing and media enterprises are also encouraged to go public, the GAPP said.

Securities Oversight

The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) issued a notice on April 4, stepping up its stringent oversight of domestically listed securities companies.

According to the notice, the securities companies are required to seek the CSRC's approval for any financing activities or asset reorganizations that result in an ownership change of more than 5 percent of the companies' equity.

The companies also should inform investors about potential risks before launching a new business as well as disclose their risk assessment conditions in their annual and half-year reports.

In addition, they have an obligation to inform shareholders if they have financial difficulties or plan to replace top officials such as chairmen and general managers.

Implementation Prioritized

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) is working with industry authorities on a detailed timetable to push through the country's big 10 industrial revitalization programs, Chen Bin, a senior official with the NDRC, told Xinhua News Agency.

The timetable will clarify all concrete measures and authorities charged with their implementations as well as establish a time limit for enforcement of the measures, Chen said.

"We may also make some changes or add new measures to the programs and make ensure that are properly put in place," Chen said. "Some of the measures have already taken effect with the industries showing signs of recovery."

Transfer Contract

The State Administration of Industry and Commerce (SAIC) announced on April 6 that it will craft and promote a model contract for the transfer of rural land-use rights so as to safeguard the interests of farmers.

The SAIC said the model contract will detail the land rights to be transferred, the duration of the transfer, payments, and rights and responsibilities of both parties to ensure that the land is used only for agricultural purposes.

Last year, the Central Government started permitting farmers to transfer their land-use rights to boost agricultural production and the development of countryside.