Overview

• Last week the National Health Commission ordered all tertiary hospitals to provide epidural anesthesia during childbirth by the end of 2025.
• Authorities plan to extend epidural services to secondary hospitals by 2027 to improve access across more facilities.
• A growing number of provinces are adding anesthesia costs to medical insurance while Sichuan has proposed 25-day marriage leave and 150-day maternity leave.
• The World Health Organization recommends epidurals for healthy pregnant women, but only around 30% of Chinese mothers currently receive them compared with over 70% in France, the United States and Canada.
• China’s population fell for the third consecutive year in 2024 and its fertility rate remains at 1.2 children per woman as high childcare costs and job uncertainty deter families.