Jane Chen / Shanghai Daily news

In a bid to improve medical services for rural dwellers, Shanghai will spare no effort to improve its rural medical security system, Mayor Han Zheng said at the regular government work meeting on November 1.
"Governments at all levels must pay close attention to rural medical work and provide the necessary financial support for the medical security system," he stressed.
At yesterday's meeting, the message of the State Council's recent work meeting concerning medical reform in rural areas was passed on and the Shanghai Public Health Bureau briefed the meeting on its plans for the reform.
Han encouraged the health bureau to continue its efforts in rural medical work and to improve the medical system under the new guidance of the central government.
"We must study the new situation and work out strategies to solve new problems arising from recent population changes in the rural areas and to ensure medical service for the needy rural population," he added.
Shanghai has applied its existing rural medical system for 46 years in all its rural areas.  And 96.7 percent of the rural population has participated the government-sponsored rural medical insurance system or have other forms of medical insurance.
The remaining 3.3 percent, or 28,500 people, are mostly needy people who can't afford insurance.
According to a brief presented at yesterday's meeting, by the end of this month, the government plans to financially assist all of this group to participate in the insurance system.