Hong Kong
Reuters
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China said by the end of the year, all tertiary level hospitals must provide epidural anesthesia during childbirth.
The National Health Commission on China (NHC) said in a statement last week that while epidural services must be provided by 2025, epidural services must be provided by 2025.
Officials are struggling to raise the birth rate of the world’s second-largest economy after China’s population declined for the third consecutive year in 2024, and experts have warned that the recession will worsen in the coming years.
Approximately 30% of pregnant women in China are under anesthesia to relieve pain during childbirth, but in some developed countries, official China’s daily life says, compared to over 70%.
The World Health Organization recommends epidural for healthy pregnant women who demand pain relief, and is widely used in many countries around the world, including France, where around 82% of pregnant women choose one, and more than 67% do in the US and Canada.
The move “improves the level of comfort and security of health services,” and “enhancing people’s well-being and promoting a friendly birth environment,” the NHC said.
Many states across China are also beginning to include birth anesthesia costs as part of their health insurance schemes to encourage more women to have children.
High childcare costs, job uncertainty and economic decline discouraged many young Chinese from getting married and starting a family.
In June, health officials in southwestern Sichuan Province in China proposed extending maternity leave to up to 25 days and up to 150 days to create a “fertility-friendly society.”
