Do areas with a population of less than 10 million require regular testing?
Writing | Yan Xiaoliu
Source | “Medical Community” Public Account
On May 26, Xinhua News Agency quoted the relevant person in charge of the National Medical Insurance Administration as saying that “normalized nucleic acid testing cannot be paid for by medical insurance.” The relevant article also stated that, according to a number of documents, the cost of normalized nucleic acid testing will be borne by local governments.
Two days after the relevant news was published in the newspapers, the Henan Provincial People’s Government press conference stated that the cost of normalized nucleic acid testing in the province should be borne by governments at all levels.
On the same day, Langzhong, Sichuan announced the implementation plan for normalized nucleic acid testing, requiring all citizens to “conscientiously pay and test once a week”.
Earlier, Gansu Longxi County issued the “New Coronary Pneumonia Epidemic Joint Prevention and Control Leading Group Office Announcement (No. 28, 2022)”, and also proposed “once a week, at your own expense” .
“When we received this information, we didn’t understand it very much. First of all, there has been no epidemic in our place recently, and secondly, for ordinary citizens to carry out normalization of nucleic acid once a week, we are also required to pay at our own expense. I really feel that it is a bit labor-intensive and wasteful, and it is meaningless.” On May 28, the “People’s Daily Health Client” quoted Mr. Li, a citizen of Langzhong City, Nanchong City, Sichuan Province as saying.
How to do normalized nucleic acid testing at “own expense”?
According to Sichuan’s “Langzhong Epidemic Emergency Headquarters Announcement on Carrying out Normalized Nucleic Acid Testing”, the first round of normalized nucleic acid sampling for all staff in Langzhong City will be held from May 30 to May Completed on the 31st. After May 31, local citizens are required to “conscientiously carry out a normalized nucleic acid test once a week at their own expense” at a cost of 3.50 yuan per person.
Comprehensive reports from Southern Metropolis Daily and People’s Daily Health Client, the reporter consulted with relevant departments in Langzhong, Sichuan, and received a response that the announcement was based on “requirements and regulations from superiors”. However, it still follows the principle of “willingness to check and check”. A yellow code will not be given to the consequences of failing to follow the weekly self-paid inspections. “Only those who have not consciously performed nucleic acid testing as required and caused the spread of the epidemic will be held accountable in accordance with the law.”
On May 29, the “People’s Daily Health Client” called the local Health Commission, and a staff member said: “This matter has to be paid for by itself, the government can’t afford it, and it is impossible to make a one-size-fits-all approach. , we just execute the instructions.”
Longxi, Gansu’s content on “normalized nucleic acid testing at their own expense” was first seen in the “Announcement of the Office of the Leading Group for Joint Prevention and Control of the New Coronary Pneumonia Epidemic in Longxi County, Gansu Province” issued on May 23 (No. 28, 2022) No)”.
The announcement stated that it is advocating that all people in the whole society should undergo nucleic acid testing once a week at their own expense. If the nucleic acid testing is not carried out on time, a code will be reminded. Relevant policies and measures will be implemented from May 24, and the deadline will be adjusted in time depending on the situation of the current round of epidemic “clearing” across the country.
According to the Gansu Provincial Medical Security Bureau, starting from 0:00 on May 31, the province’s nucleic acid testing price item has a maximum price limit of 16 yuan per person per person (including reagents and other related consumables) ), the maximum price limit for multi-person mixed inspection is 4 yuan/person (including reagents and other related consumables). This is slightly higher than the National Medical Insurance Bureau’s proposal that “multiple people’s mixed examinations will be charged at a standard not higher than 3.5 yuan per person”.
According to “Caixin” report, Xu Guangjian, a professor at the Institute of Public Finance and Public Policy, School of Public Administration, Renmin University of China, wrote in an article on May 12 that although the price of nucleic acid testing has dropped again and again, the normal Chemical nucleic acid testing may still put greater pressure on local finances. The government will carry out regular nucleic acid testing free of charge for the whole people, which may reduce the economic losses caused by frequent closure and control of cities, but the challenges brought by local finances also need to be paid attention to.
“Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other first- and second-tier cities may be able to afford the high cost of normalized nucleic acid testing, but small and medium-sized cities are already facing greater financial pressure. Normalized nucleic acid testing may require additional financial tools to support it.” Xu Guangjian wrote in an article.
According to the “China News” report, Shanghai has announced the first batch of 534 normalized nucleic acid sampling points. From May 1 to June 30, free nucleic acid testing will be implemented at these testing sites.
Picture description: The nucleic acid testing sampling site of Minhang District Central Hospital in Shanghai, taken on April 27, 2022. /Xinhua News Agency
With a population of less than one million,
Need a normalized nucleic acid test?
According to the seventh national census, as of 0:00 on November 1, 2020, the resident population of Langzhong, Sichuan and Longxi, Gansu were about 620,000 and 420,000, respectively.
At the press conference of the Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council on May 23, Ms. Guo Yanhong, the supervisor of the National Health and Health Commission’s Medical Administration and Medical Administration Bureau, answered a reporter’s question on the normalization of nucleic acid testing and said: ” Normalized nucleic acid testing should be determined according to the needs of local epidemic prevention and control, and must not be one-size-fits-all.”
Guo Yanhong said: “We do not require all cities to establish a 15-minute nucleic acid sampling circle, but mainly focus on provincial capital cities and cities with a population of 10 million with high risk of importation. In terms of frequency, not all people are required to be tested every 48 hours, and the specific test frequency should also be determined locally according to the occurrence and development of the epidemic and the needs of prevention and control.” (Click to learn more: “The State Council emphasizes : Normalized nucleic acid testing, absolutely not one size fits all!”)
According to data released by local bureaus of statistics, by the end of 2021, a total of 17 cities across the country have a resident population exceeding 10 million. They are Chongqing, Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Wuhan, Xi’an, Suzhou, Zhengzhou, Hangzhou, Shijiazhuang, Linyi, Dongguan, Qingdao and Changsha.
In addition to Langzhong in Sichuan and Longxi in Gansu, there are also some “dual-non” areas, that is, provincial capital cities with non-ten-million-level permanent residents and high import risks, have also launched normalized testing programs .
Jiangxi Xinyu, with a permanent population of 1.2 million, issued the “Notice on Carrying out Normalized Nucleic Acid Testing Services” on May 13, saying that employees in key places will be tested once a day, and high-risk exposure groups will be implemented. 1 inspection every 2 days, and 1 inspection every 3 days for the general population. Those who fail to test over time will be given a yellow code, and access to crowded public places is strictly restricted, and public transportation is strictly prohibited.
On the 21st, Xinyu City dynamically adjusted the frequency of normalized nucleic acid testing. The 3-day 1 inspection for the general population is adjusted to 10-day 1 inspection, and the 2-day 1 inspection for high-risk exposed groups is changed to 3-day 1 inspection. However, there is a new requirement for normalized testing in schools (including kindergartens), with rolling inspections at a rate of 20% per day. The relevant content will be implemented from May 23.
According to a message on the Xinyu Municipal Government website on May 18, normalized testing is free for citizens.
Shanxi Jincheng and Liaoning Yingkou, with a permanent population of about 2 million, set the frequency of nucleic acid for ordinary residents to be at least once every 10 days and at least once a week.
Shanxi Jincheng stated that the normalized nucleic acid test is free for all personnel inside and outside the city, and the required expenses are jointly borne by the local financial funds and the medical insurance fund. Those who have not been inspected for more than 10 days will be assigned a yellow code.
Source:
1. Sichuan Langzhong implements the normalization of nucleic acid at its own expense, local response: follow the notice. Health Times
2. Announcement on Checking Negative Nucleic Acid Test Certificates in Public Places in the City. Released in Shijiazhuang
3. Longxi County New Coronary Pneumonia Epidemic Joint Prevention and Control Leading Group Office Announcement (No. 28, 2022). Handheld Longxi
4. (Shanghai War Epidemic Record) The normalized nucleic acid testing points in Shanghai implement free nucleic acid testing. China News Network
Source: Medicine
Editor in charge: Yan Xiaoliu
Proofreading: Zang Hengjia