Jane Chen / Shanghai Daily news

Shanghai will extend free pre-marital medical examinations throughout the whole city from August as a measure to secure the good health of newly-weds and their newborns, today's Youth Daily reported.
Currently, the free checks are only applied in the districts of Luwan, Zhabei, Jiading, Fengxian and Pudong, the report said, citing the city's civil affairs bureau.
The free service has proved successful in attracting people to take the check-ups, Luwan civil affairs officials said.  The proportion of couples using the service in the district has shot up to 20 percent from the previous 4 percent.
The free service was introduced in response to a sharp decline in the number of people taking the previously compulsory checks after the new marriage law granted couples the right to decide whether to take it or not.
The new rule, while being acclaimed as an advance in the protection of personal privacy, has been criticized by doctors as potentially leading to a rise in the spread of infectious diseases between ignorant partners and an increase in birth-defects.
Fewer than 5 percent of couples take the checks now, they said, and about 10 percent of them are diagnosed as having infectious diseases or health conditions that render them unsuitable for parenthood.  Medical guidance should be given to the couples before they marry, they noted.