Settlement system sees more hospitals included

According to the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, great progress has been made in including more hospitals into the real-time social security settlement system.

By Aug 15, a total of 5,843 medical institutions have been included in the system, which means non-local patients can enjoy real-time social security settlement for medical services.

Patients who need to go to hospital outside their own provinces could register at their local medical authorities and select hospitals from the list of 5,843 medical institutions. After finishing these procedures, they only need to pay their own part of the billed medical fees, while the part covered by social security funds will be automatically deducted.

Social workers have more say over “left-behind” children

The Ministry of Civil Affairs, together with four other ministries, has recently issued a guiding document on allowing professional social workers to play a bigger role in caring for and protecting “left-behind” children in rural regions, or those whose parents work far away from their hometowns.

The guiding document has made clear the chief missions of professional social workers in caring after and protecting rural “left-behind” children, which include assisting the local government to protect “left-behind” children, reporting to local authorities on the welfare of “left-behind” children suffering from violence, and assisting in emergencies.

Besides, professional social workers should help in psychological counseling, temporary care, and spiritual comfort for the “left-behind” children who are without guardians or have suffered from violence.

Colleges, institutions get boost in developing talent

On Aug 22, the Ministry of Education issued a document on accelerating the development of high-end talent in its affiliated higher education institutions.

The document said that the flow of high-end talents among colleges and universities should be properly guided and regulated.

The main colleges have an association on recruiting talented people, and that association should play its role well in the building of a self-regulatory system and discussion system of the profession.

Besides, colleges, research institutions and enterprises are encouraged to help each other with their comparative talent advantages, while high-end talents are encouraged to flow to colleges located in the central, western, and northeastern provinces and regions, where the economy lags relatively behind that of eastern coastal regions.

New standards for industrial injury compensation

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security has recently issued a guiding document on adjusting the standards of industrial injury insurance compensation. According to the document, compensation for disabilities caused by industrial injuries and pensions for the families of those who die from industrial injuries should be adjusted according to the average salary and living expenses of a region.

The provincial level of government is in charge of deciding how to adjust them.

Loan procedures to be made simpler for students

The National Center for Student Financial Aid issued an emergency notice on Aug 22, which requires simplifying the approval procedures for student loans and raising efficiency, to ensure that any college student who needs loans will get them.

According to the emergency notice, the Ministry of Education must discuss with the China Development Bank not to set any ceiling to the number or total amount of student loans nationwide.

All college students from poor or struggling families who meet the standards should get the loans under the new plan.

Industry alliances forbidden to illicitly charge enterprises

Echoing the call of the top leadership of the Communist Party of China and the State Council, the National Development and Reform Commission, as the nation’s top economic planner, launched a nationwide move to curb industry alliances from mandatory charging enterprises because of their monopoly power.

A handful of typical cases have been published for public supervision.