The National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC) recently teamed up with the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Finance, China Insurance Regulatory Commission and the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, to issue a guideline regarding stepping up efforts to advance medical liability insurance. Officials at the commission answered questions from the media:

1. Please briefly introduce the background and purpose of issuing the guideline?

There have been many cases across China where medical staffers were attacked by patients or relatives of patients due to medical malpractice over the past several years. President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang have made it clear that it is important to maintain order at medical organizations that cannot be disturbed and to build a harmonious relationship between doctors and patients. Our commission has actively cooperated with government organizations to build a harmonious relationship between medical staff and patients. On one hand，efforts have been made to crack down on crimes that target doctors, maintaining order at hospitals. On the other hand, preventing and handling disputes caused by medical malpractice, establishing a “three-level mediation and one insurance system” is also a major task. Medical liability risk-sharing mechanism is an important part of the "three-level mediation and one insurance system.” The guideline aims to help establish a mechanism that involves third party organizations to handle medical disputes and settle after medical malpractice, to further improve the medical liability insurance system in the country.

Previous practices in China and abroad showed that using third-party insurance agencies in resolving medical disputes can not only help patients receive financial compensation quicker but also accurately define rights and obligations between doctors and patients. As a third party, insurance agencies can bring medical disputes outside hospitals, which also can help maintain order inside medical institutions.

2. You mentioned your main tasks. One is maintaining order and the other is building a harmonious doctor-patient relationship. Would you please elaborate on the progress of the two tasks?

In terms of cracking down on crimes that target doctors, we have already carried out a special project to maintain order. Since December 2013, our commission has worked with organizations to launch special action against those who break laws by disrupting medical order and put doctors and patients in danger. Moreover, efforts have been made to redefine regulations so that there is legislation supporting punishing those who commit crimes against doctors. In terms of improving the system to prevent and handle medical disputes, efforts have been made to strengthen the legal system. Regulations for handling medical accidents have been upgraded to regulations for preventing and handling medical disputes. Also, advancing the use of mediation in medical disputes in order to reach a settlement to avoid bringing cases to court. Last but not least, actively promote the building of medical liability risk-sharing mechanism. In recent years, our commission has worked with several organizations to jointly build a medical risk sharing mechanism, which includes medical liability insurance, a medical risk fund as well as medical accident insurance. Moreover, the commission has made efforts in medical reform and improving medical services.