China is intensifying its efforts to incentivize childbearing by proposing to make hospital deliveries free of charge, reports Caixin. This is the latest step in a broad campaign to reverse the country’s deepening demographic decline.
The National Healthcare Security Administration, the country’s medical-insurance regulator, set out plans at a meeting last week to eliminate out-of-pocket costs for childbirth within policy limits. Seven provinces, including Jilin, Jiangsu and Shandong, have already rolled out policies to fully cover inpatient delivery expenses.
The initiative comes as Beijing grapples with a shrinking workforce and an ageing society. While the government has scrapped birth limits and introduced various incentives, the high cost of raising a child remains a primary deterrent for many families.