After canceling compulsory premarital medical checkups, China's local governments are now trying to provide free exams to new couples to help curb the spread of inherited and contagious diseases.
The Laoshan District of Qingdao in east China's Shandong Province is one of the national leaders in this effort. The district's government decided in May to allocate 250,000 yuan (US$30,200) a year to subsidize the tests.
The Wuchang District of Wuhan City in central China's Hubei Province and Putuo District in Zhoushan City in east China's Zhejiang Province have launched similar programs.
The measures are welcomed by many new couples. From October 1, 2003, when the compulsory premarital medical checkups were abolished, to May this year, 1,228 couples have registered in Laoshan with civil departments for marriage, but only 2 percent opted for medical exams. Since the tests were made free, the rate has gone up to 20 percent in six months.
Under the new regulation, couples registering with civil affairs departments for marriage can decide on their own whether to go for medical checks prior to their nuptials.
The change was hailed by many as an improvement. But a growing number of citizens are increasingly concerned about the negative implications surrounding the decline in those willing to have the checkups.
Statistics from the health department of central China's Hunan Province show that the province has 600,000 newborns every year. The rate of newborns suffering congenital physical defects has increased to 12.34 per thousand from 2001's nine per thousand.
Wang Xiaoguang, deputy director in charge of the Laoshan District Women and Children's Hospital, said premarital checkups can help find inherited and contagious diseases, such as hemophilia, congenital heart disease, sexually transmitted diseases and mental illness, helping curb the spread of these conditions.
Health department statistics show that in the past 10 years, 10 percent of new couples in urban areas have been diagnosed with various diseases in premarital checkups, and 13 to 15 percent in the rural areas.
To encourage new couples to undergo medical exams before marriage, the Laoshan District government provides various packages to offer greater convenience and has set strict regulations for doctors to protect the privacy of marriage registrants.
Laoshan's local government is still not satisfied with the results, however, saying 20 percent is still too low.