HONG KONG: Beijing’s government on Thursday (Jun 15) announced that it would cover 16 types of assisted reproduction technology under the city’s health care system from Jul 1, the latest move by authorities to boost China’s flagging birth rate.
In-vitro fertilisation, embryo transplantation, freezing and storing semen are some of the treatments that would be included under basic insurance, said Du Xin, deputy director of Beijing’s Municipal Medical Insurance Bureau.
The measure comes as China grapples to stem a decline in births after posting its first population drop in six decades. The number of newborns dropped to a record low of 6.77 per 1,000 people last year and is expected to decline further in 2023.
China’s National Health Commission last August issued guidance to provinces on reforming policies to support fertility rates.
Liaoning, a province in China’s northeast, said in May that it would include assisted reproduction technologies from Jul 1.
Source: CNA
