Recently, National Health and Family Planning Commission promulgated the Decision on Modifying Implementation Details of Medical Institutions Management Ordinance (Exposure Draft). Compared with Implementation Details of Medical Institutions Management Ordinance in1994, the newly added content comprises 5 changes, e.g. allowing on-the-job doctors to start up clinics, including the inspection center into medical institution scope and exempting architectural design from the approval of health departments.

        Although specific implementation date is unspecified in the exposure draft, we can see that the policy tends to be more flexible, which may be good news for doctors with good ideas and strong execution.

Change 1: Newly added medical institution -- The inspection center will become an independent medical institution.

        In the exposure draft, clinical laboratory centers, medical examination centers, pathological diagnosis centers, medical imaging diagnosis centers, hemodialysis centers and hospice peace centers are also listed in the directory of “Medical Institutions”, which means that with the establishment of medical market, the requirement of medical examination, pathology, diagnostic imaging, hemodialysis and combination of medical and endowment resources will become a new source of growth for medical industry with reduced barriers in the policies.

Change 2: Less strictness with application for the establishment of medical institution -- Permit on-the-job healthcare professionals to establish medical institutions.

Compared with Implementation Details of Medical Institutions Management Ordinance enacted in 1994, for this exposure draft, in the description of not allowing application for establishment of medical institutions, the clause of “Healthcare professionals on-the-job, invalided out or suspended from duty without payment in the medical institution” has been abolished.

        It’s a big encouragement for healthcare professionals, which means that even on-the-job staff in the medical institution is allowed to establish a medical institution or start up a clinic.

Change 3: The architectural design exempted from the approval of health departments.

Change 4: the print right of Practicing License of Medical Institution and its copy is transferred to provincial National Health and Family Planning Commission.

Change 5: Online medical institution supervision become available