China calls for additional reform of its national health-care system

"Chinese health officials on Tuesday called for additional reform of China's health-care system amid mounting costs, problems at public hospitals and a surge of patients with chronic diseases," the Wall Street Journal reports. "The call for change comes as China's leaders are still patting themselves on the back for having recently completed a three-year overhaul of the nation's health-care system," according to the newspaper, which adds, "One of the most critical issues is preventative care, said Michael O'Leary, the China representative of the World Health Organization. More than 80 percent of government spending on health care goes to covering the cost of chronic diseases, yet less than two percent is allocated toward primary prevention, said Dr. O'Leary" (Burkitt, 7/24).