Starting July 1, Beijing will implement the new medical insurance reimbursement standards.

The reimbursement starting line of employees' outpatient service is lower, while reimbursement rates of community outpatient service, certain medical materials and artificial organs are increased. The new policy will cover 12 million insured people except for those who have already been in the new rural cooperative medical service system.

The starting line of town employees' reimbursement of outpatient and emergency service will be reduced from CNY2000 to CNY1800. Outpatient service reimbursement rate of in-service employees in community medical service agencies will improve by 10%, rising from 60% to 70%. Reimbursement rate of certain medical materials is raised to 70% and artificial organs by 20%. These are applicable to all insured people.

For in-service employees joining the basic medical insurance, those whose medical expenses in first half of 2008 that have applied for reimbursement still obey the old rules, while those who haven't will refer to the new standards.

The new standards will be brought into effect on July 1, 2008.