Seems like only yesterday that China was being celebrated in certain quarters for its “One Child” policy. Now the leadership – alarmed at the thought of a future holding less than 1.4 Billion Chinese citizens – has reversed course to encourage childbirth by passing the medical costs on to the taxpayers.
Since the other big complaint from Chinese people about the high cost of having children is the cost of education, it will presumably only be time before the taxpayer starts paying the bill for that too. (It is interesting what the individual has been expected to pay for in a nominally Communist country). Before too long, China will have the same kind of budget & debt problems the US has.
“The goal is that from the moment a pregnant woman enters the hospital until she leaves holding her baby, insured individuals will basically not have to pay out of pocket for expenses incurred during inpatient delivery that fall within the medical insurance catalogue,” he said, according to The Paper.