China will cover all out-of-pocket medical expenses related to childbirth starting next year, as authorities intensify efforts to reverse the country’s declining birth rate.
According to China’s National Healthcare Security Administration, the government aims to provide nationwide full reimbursement for all policy-covered childbirth-related medical expenses by 2026.
These include prenatal checkups, delivery costs, and other approved medical services.
In a report issued on Saturday, the administration said the move seeks to significantly improve healthcare coverage for expectant mothers, to achieve “no out-of-pocket expenses” for childbirth.
The policy comes as China struggles with a shrinking population. The country recorded its first population decline in decades in 2022, and the downward trend continued through 2024.
Demographers warn that the situation may worsen due to persistently low birth rates, a shrinking workforce, and a rapidly ageing population, increasing pressure on already debt-laden local governments.
China’s birth rate has steadily fallen due to the long-term impact of the one-child policy, which remained in force from 1980 to 2015, along with rapid urbanisation.
Rising childcare and education costs, job insecurity, and a slowing economy have further discouraged young couples from starting families.
Several provinces, including Jilin, Jiangsu, and Shandong, have already introduced near-free childbirth policies.
In March, Chinese authorities announced plans to actively respond to demographic challenges by offering childcare subsidies and making preschool education free.
The government has previously rolled out measures such as extended maternity leave, tax incentives, and housing subsidies to encourage couples to have more children, but results have remained limited.
