By Fineline Cube 
The National Healthcare Security Administration (NHSA) this week released its national medical and healthcare development annual statistical report for 2024. The report highlights significant progress in healthcare coverage and reimbursement, reflecting the government’s ongoing efforts to enhance healthcare accessibility and affordability.
Key Financial Metrics
Over the 12-month period, the Basic Medical Insurance (BMI) fund generated RMB 3.49 trillion in income, while outgoing expenditure reached RMB 2.98 trillion. The number of enrollees in the BMI reached 1,326.6208 million, with the participation rate maintained at 95%.
NRDL Adjustments and Drug Reimbursement
Since its establishment in 2018, the NHSA has conducted seven consecutive years of dynamic adjustments to the National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL). A cumulative total of 835 drugs have been newly added to the list. In 2024, negotiated drugs within the agreement period were reimbursed 280 million times.
DRG Payment Coverage
By the end of 2024, diagnosis-related group (DRG) payment had basically achieved full coverage in all coordinated regions and eligible medical institutions. The proportion of discharged cases using DRG payment exceeded 90%, and DRG payment accounted for about 80% of all eligible inpatient medical insurance fund expenditures.
Volume-Based Procurement (VBP) Initiatives
In 2024, the tenth round of volume-based procurement (VBP) was conducted, involving 62 drugs, and the fifth round of high-value medical consumables VBP was carried out, involving peripheral vascular stents and artificial cochleas. To date, a total of 10 rounds of VBP have been conducted, covering 435 drugs, and 5 rounds of high-value medical consumables VBP have been conducted, covering 7 major categories of high-value medical consumables in fields such as cardiology, orthopedics, and ophthalmology.-Fineline Info & Tech