Over 40 years ago, primary health care (PHC) was defined in the Alma-Ata Declaration as a critical component of the health care system to address the basic health demand of the people. In China, the Government attaches great importance to health care at the primary level. After the launch of the historical Reform of the Medical and Health Care System in 2009, the PHC system in China has witnessed major progress and breakthroughs, especially in its steadily increased capacity, continuously improved accessibility, and betterment in equality. In this review, we summarized published literatures and official policies, synthesized data from the electronic registration information system of the National Health Commission, national statistical reports, and yearbooks in health care. The review is intended to describe the systematic development of PHC in China in the last decade. The main results include: the solid national policy foundation, increasing number of PHC institutions and workforce, better training of PHC professionals, major achievements in primary health indicators, government financial support to PHC institutions, improved PHC budgeting and insurance coverage, and the advancement of supporting technologies. Challenges and prospects are also discussed.

BACKGROUND: Given the rapid population aging in China, achieving universal health coverage (UHC) presents a primary challenge in addressing unmet healthcare needs and associated inequalities among middle-aged and older adults. Several studies have focused on healthcare utilization and its inequalities, but little attention has been paid to the inequality in unmet healthcare needs. This study aimed to analyze the inequalities in unmet the healthcare needs of middle-aged and older adults in eastern China during the progression toward UHC.
METHODS: Data were obtained from the fourth, fifth, and sixth National Health Service Survey (NHSS) of Jiangsu Province, located in eastern China, during the years 2008, 2013, and 2018, respectively. Logistic regression models were used to assess the associated factors of unmet healthcare needs. The inequality was measured according to the concentration index (CI) and its decomposition.
RESULTS: In this study, we found that 12.86%, 2.22%, and 48.89% of middle-aged and older adults reported unmet needs for outpatient and inpatient services and physical examinations, respectively. The prevalence of unmet outpatient needs increased from 2008 to 2018, while the prevalence of unmet inpatient services was lower but maintained. The prevalence of unmet needs for physical examinations among middle-aged and older adults markedly decreased since 2008. Rural areas had a higher prevalence of unmet needs for inpatient services and physical examinations than urban areas. Unmet healthcare needs were more prevalent among the poor. The pro-poor inequalities of unmet healthcare needs have been mitigated during the progression toward UHC; however, they remain predominant among rural middle-aged and older adults for outpatient and inpatient services. Socioeconomic factors significantly influenced unmet healthcare needs and contributed to their inequalities.
CONCLUSIONS: The findings characterize the prevalence and inequality of unmet healthcare need among middle-aged and older adults in eastern China during the progression toward UHC. Policy interventions should be actively advocated to effectively mitigate the unmet healthcare needs and address the associated inequalities.

BACKGROUND: Inadequate financing constrains primary healthcare (PHC) capacity in many low- and middle-income countries, particularly in rural areas. This study evaluates an innovative PHC financing reform in rural China that aimed to improve access to healthcare services through supply-side integration and the establishment of a designated PHC fund.
METHODS: We employed a quasi-experimental synthetic difference-in-differences (SDID) approach to analyze county-level panel data from Chongqing Province, China, spanning from 2009 to 2018. The study compared the impact of the reform on PHC access and per capita health expenditures in Pengshui County with 37 other control counties (districts). We assessed the reform\'s impact on two key outcomes: the share of outpatient visits at PHC facilities and per capita total PHC expenditure.
RESULTS: The reform led to a significant increase in the share of outpatient visits at PHC facilities (14.92% points; 95% CI: 6.59-23.24) and an increase in per capita total PHC expenditure (87.30 CNY; 95% CI: 3.71-170.88) in Pengshui County compared to the synthetic control. These effects were robust across alternative model specifications and increased in magnitude over time, highlighting the effectiveness of the integrated financing model in enhancing PHC capacity and access in rural China.
CONCLUSIONS: This research presents compelling evidence demonstrating that horizontal integration in PHC financing significantly improved utilization and resource allocation in rural primary care settings in China. This reform serves as a pivotal model for resource-limited environments, demonstrating how supply-side financing integration can bolster PHC and facilitate progress toward universal health coverage. The findings underscore the importance of sustainable financing mechanisms and the need for policy commitment to achieve equitable healthcare access.

BACKGROUND: Achieving universal health coverage (UHC) involves all individuals attaining accessible health interventions at an affordable cost. We examined current patterns and temporal trends of cancer mortality and UHC across sociodemographic index (SDI) settings, and quantified these association.
METHODS: We used data from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 and Our World in Data. The UHC effective coverage index was obtained to assess the potential population health gains delivered by health systems. The estimated annual percentage change (EAPC) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated to quantify the trend of cancer age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR). A generalized linear model was applied to estimate the association between ASMR and UHC.
RESULTS: The high (EAPC = -0.9% [95% CI, -1.0%, -0.9%]) and high-middle (-0.9% [-1.0%, -0.8%]) SDI regions had the fastest decline in ASMR (per 100,000) for total cancers from 1990 to 2019. The overall UHC effective coverage index increased by 27.9% in the high-SDI quintile to 62.2% in the low-SDI quintile. A negative association was observed between ASMR for all-cancer (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 0.87 [0.76, 0.99]), stomach (0.73 [0.56, 0.95]), breast (0.64 [0.52, 0.79]), cervical (0.42 [0.30, 0.60]), lip and oral cavity (0.55 [0.40, 0.75]), and nasopharynx (0.42 [0.26, 0.68]) cancers and high UHC level (the lowest as the reference).
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings strengthen the evidence base for achieving UHC to improve cancer outcomes.
BACKGROUND: This work is funded by the China National Natural Science Foundation and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Innovation Fund for Medical Science.

UNASSIGNED: The World Health Organisation (WHO) accepted the Integrated People-centred Health Services (IPCHS) framework in 2016 as an essential component for achieving universal health coverage in fragmented health systems. We aimed to examine the empirical applications of the WHO IPCHS framework to guide its use in strengthening health-service research.
UNASSIGNED: Academic databases and the IPCHS website were searched for relevant articles published between 2016 and July 2023. Two reviewers independently screened and extracted data on the study design, setting, IPCHS framework components, and facilitators and barriers to implementing the IPCHS strategies. Descriptive and content analyses were conducted.
UNASSIGNED: Six studies were identified using the IPCHS framework. Studies have examined a combination of the five IPCHS strategies. All studies reported building strong primary care-based systems and coordinating care for individuals. Continued relationships and trust, co-production of health programmes, diversity of health care team, and technology were major facilitators, while low health literacy, lack of primary setting capacity and healthcare workforce were principal barriers to IPCHS implementation.
UNASSIGNED: This scoping review offers an overview of IPCHS strategies employed in healthcare research. Generally, the IPCHS framework remains underutilised in primary research. These results offer guidance for future research to support effective healthcare delivery.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigates whether differences in individual-level and provincial-level health funding could explain or mitigate health inequalities among older people in terms of non-communicable diseases within a population served by fragmented health insurance schemes.
METHODS: A national repeated cross-sectional analysis was done of the 2008, 2011, 2014, and 2018 Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Surveys. These provided a total of 44,623 persons aged 60 and over.
METHODS: Respondents were asked whether they had been diagnosed with any types of non-communicable diseases by doctors. A dichotomous outcome variable was constructed to indicate whether older people had any diagnosed non-communicable diseases.
RESULTS: Compared with uninsured older persons, those who were enrolled in social health insurance schemes designed for civil servants as cadres, urban employees and urban residents were more likely to report a higher incidence of non-communicable diseases. There were no significant differences in the prevalence of non-communicable diseases between uninsured older people and those in the New Rural Cooperative Medical Scheme. Although the incidence of non-communicable diseases among older persons increased over the study period, greater health expenditure was significantly associated with a lower risk of non-communicable diseases. The interaction results between individual social health insurance schemes and public health expenditure indicate that disparities in the incidence of non-communicable diseases among different health insurance schemes diminish as public health expenditure increases. Older individuals with Public Free Medical Services benefited the most in provinces with higher public health expenditure compared with other health insurance schemes.
CONCLUSIONS: Given the evidence of the beneficial effects of universal health coverage on non-communicable diseases among older persons, these results should encourage policy makers to increase public health funding and to raise the overall benefit packages for social health insurance schemes.

UNASSIGNED: Prevention and control of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) become a policy priority in Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in China, while NCD management has never been comprehensively estimated at national and subnational levels. We aimed to assess NCD management in China nationally and in key subpopulations, investigate inequalities from multidimensions, and further examine its association with health financing and resources.
UNASSIGNED: Data included were from China Chronic Disease and Risk Factors Surveillance (CCDRFS) and China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS). Following the WHO recommended frameworks, we selected eight NCD health service and risk management indicators and used meta-analysis to construct the composite NCD index. We explored the trends in and projections of NCD management index and indicators at national and subnational levels by using Bayesian regression models with average annual percentage change (AAPC) from 2004 to 2018 and probability of reaching the UHC target by 2030. We further conducted comprehensive inequality analyses of NCD indicators from multidimensions with patterns of changes over time using absolute difference and relative ratio. Finally, we quantified the associations between NCD management performance with health financing and resources using stochastic frontier analysis.
UNASSIGNED: In China, the NCD management index increased slowly from 62.0% (95% CI 36.0 to 84.0) in 2004 to 64.3% (95% CI 44.0 to 82.2) in 2018, with lagging performance being observed in prevention domain (AAPC -0.1%, 95% CrI -1.0 to 0.8). And all management indicators presented low probabilities of accomplishing 2030 targets in China. Notably, based on subnational analysis, diverse tendency and magnitude of inequalities in multiple NCD indicators were identified with widening gaps between genders (non-overweight, diabetes treatment), age groups (non-use of tobacco), urban-rural areas (non-use of alcohol, non-use of tobacco), regions (sufficient physical activity), and wealth quintiles (non-overweight, sufficient physical activity). Additionally, it was observed that compared with urban area, rural area had constantly lower health resources and presented 2.2% lower NCD management performance in 2018. Importantly, we found that health financing and resources especially distributed in primary health care (PHC) facilities were closely and positively associated with NCD management performance. A 1000 yuan increase of government health expenditure (GHE) per capita and a 10 increase of medical beds per 1000 capita in PHC facilities were associated with a 4.0% (95% CI 2.0 to 6.0) and 6.8% (95% CI 0.2 to 13.5) increase of NCD management index, respectively.
UNASSIGNED: The progress towards NCD management is slow at national level and in key subpopulations in China, with great challenges of existing and widening inequalities between genders, age groups, urban-rural areas, regions and socioeconomic groups. Rural and old people were still vulnerable populations who were lagging behind in NCD prevention and control. Optimising resource allocation by strengthening PHC especially in rural area, developing tailor-made programmes targeting specific populations such as old individuals, simultaneously integrating gender, education, and economic interventions to reduce inequalities should be prioritised to help China tackle NCDs during the progress towards UHC.
UNASSIGNED: National Natural Science Foundation of China.

Primary health care (PHC) is the most effective way to improve people\'s health and well-being, and primary care services should act as the cornerstone of a resilient health system and the foundation of universal health coverage. To promote high quality development of PHC, an International Symposium on Quality Primary Health Care Development was held on December 4-5, 2023 in Beijing, China, and the participants have proposed and advocated the Beijing Initiative on Quality Primary Health Care Development. The Beijing Initiative calls on all countries to carry out and strengthen 11 actions: fulfill political commitment and accountability; achieve \"health in all policies\" through multisectoral coordination; establish sustainable financing; empower communities and individuals; provide community-based integrated care; promote the connection and integration of health services and social services through good governance; enhance training, allocation and motivation of health workforce, and medical education; expand application of traditional and alternative medicine for disease prevention and illness healing; empower PHC with digital technology; ensure access to medicinal products and appropriate technologies; and last, strengthen global partnership and international health cooperation. The Initiative will enrich the content of quality development of PHC, build consensus, and put forward policies for quality development of PHC in China in the new era, which are expected to make contributions in accelerating global actions.

BACKGROUND: Stronger primary health care (PHC) is critical to achieving the United Nations\' Sustainable Development Goals. However, there is scarce evidence on the impact of PHC on health system performance in developing countries. Since 2009, China has implemented an ambitious health system reform, among which PHC has received unprecedented attention. This study investigates the role of PHC resource in improving health status, financial protection and health equity.
METHODS: We obtained province-level and individual-level data to conduct a longitudinal study across the period of China\'s health system reform. The dependent variables included health outcomes and financial protection. The independent variables were the number of PHC physicians and share of PHC physicians in all physicians. Mixed-effect models were used for adjusted associations.
RESULTS: From 2003 to 2017, the number of PHC physicians slightly increased by 31.75 per 100,000 persons and the share of PHC physicians in all physicians increased by 3.62 percentage points. At the province level, greater PHC physician density was positively associated with life expectancy, negatively associated with age-standardized excess mortality, infectious disease mortality, perinatal mortality low birth weight, as well as the share of health expenses in total consumption expenses. At the individual and household level, greater PHC physician density was positively associated with self-assessed health, and negatively associated with incidence of catastrophic health expenditures. Compared to other quintiles, the poorest quintile benefited more from PHC physician density.
CONCLUSIONS: In China, an increased PHC physician supply was associated with improved health system performance. While China\'s PHC system has been strengthened in the context of China\'s health system reforms, further effective incentives should be developed to attract more qualified PHC workers.

This study aimed to investigate the utilization patterns and factors related to oral health care for 5-year-old preschoolers based on Andersen\'s Behavioural Model in Guizhou Province, Western China.
A cross-sectional study of 4,862 5-year-old preschoolers in 66 kindergartens was conducted in 2019 and 2020. A basic oral examination and a survey of parents and grandparents were conducted to gather data on oral health services. The results were analysed using chi-square tests and logistic regression analysis.
The utilization rate of oral health services for children in Guizhou province was 20.5%. The dmft was 4.43, and the rate of caries was 72.2%. The average cost of a dental visit was higher in rural areas and higher for girls. Logistic regression analysis revealed that dmft ≥ 6 teeth, a history of toothache, starting toothbrushing at age ≤ 3 years and limited parental knowledge were the primary factors impacting dental visits.
Needs factors such as severe oral conditions and pain in children are the main reasons for the utilization of these services. This study underscores the urgency to actively promote the importance of oral health and expand insurance coverage for oral health services.