On April 7, 2026, an article by Ambassador Wu Wei titled “Advancing Health Cooperation and Mutual Learning to Build a Global Community of Health for All” was published in The Kaselehlie Press, the bi-weekly newspaper in the FSM, in its Vol. 26 and Iss. 9.
The full text is as follows:
Recently, a friend from Pohnpei told me that the China Medical Team in the FSM, currently working at the Pohnpei State Hospital, has gained great popularity among local patients. In particular, a steady stream of patients have been visiting the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for acupuncture and cupping therapy. When sharing their experiences of the superb medical skills of Chinese doctors, some FSM friends also expressed great curiosity about the development of the health sector in China, a country with over 1.4 billion people.
Currently, quality and accessible medical services, including the popular acupuncture treatments, have long been part of daily life for ordinary Chinese. This is underpinned by over seven decades of persistent efforts since the founding of the People’s Republic of China to develop medical and health services, promote modern and traditional medicine, and safeguard people’s health. It has been achieved over the past decade through a comprehensive implementation of principles for health-related work in the new era, which features that we will focus on the grassroots, pursue reform and innovation as a driving force and disease prevention as the priority, give importance to both traditional Chinese medicine and western medicine, incorporate health into all policy-making, and strive for participation by all and benefits to all. It also represents the vivid practice of translating the blueprint of Healthy China Initiative into reality.
The just-concluded Session of National People’s Congress and Session of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference once again brought the Healthy China Initiative into the global spotlight. On March 6, President Xi Jinping, while attending a joint group discussion during the Sessions, emphasized that building a Healthy China by 2035 is a strategic decision made by the CPC Central Committee. He noted that the period of the 15th Five-Year Plan will be a critical period for achieving this goal, calling for coordinated planning, intensified efforts, and the pursuit of decisive progress. At present, China is accelerating the implementation of the Healthy China Initiative in line with the tasksheet and roadmap set out in the 15th Five-Year Plan, striving to provide the people with equitable, accessible, and integrated health services. These efforts will not only benefit the Chinese people, but also inject strong impetus into the building of a global community of health for all.
Implementing the health-first strategy
President Xi Jinping emphasized that life is the most precious for human beings. China has put the people and its lives first. Protecting the lives and health of its people could be pursued at all costs. Health is ‘1’, and all other things are ‘0’s following the ‘1’. Without the ‘1’, the ‘0’s mean nothing. The CPC and the whole society must firmly uphold the philosophy of putting the people and their lives above all else, prioritize the protection of people’s safety and health, and implement a health-first strategy to provide comprehensive, whole-process health services for the people. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, President Xi Jinping has personally set the direction for deepening the reform of the medical and health care system, removed obstacles, and made strategic plans for important work concerning health and people’s well-being, including infectious disease prevention and control, maternal and child health, myopia prevention among adolescents, chronic disease management, elderly health care, and mental health services. These efforts have charted the course for accelerating the building of a Healthy China.
The urgent needs and pressing concerns of the people regarding medical treatment and healthcare are the top priorities that must be addressed. China has made concerted efforts to extend and expand medical resources to the grassroots levels, with its healthcare network reaching from cities to remote villages and islands, thereby solving the problem of inaccessibility to medical care in remote areas. It has carried out centralized bulk-purchasing of medicines and medical consumables on a regular basis, addressing the global challenge of inflated medicine prices. For instance, the price of insulin used for diabetes treatment dropped from an average of approximately RMB 180 yuan per vial to around RMB 70 yuan after centralized procurement, saving each patient approximately RMB 4,000 yuan annually. China has established the world’s largest health service system, disease prevention and control system, and medical insurance system. Today, over 1.33 billion people were covered by China’s basic medical insurance, with the coverage rate remaining stable at around 95 percent. Over 90 percent of the population can reach their nearest healthcare facility within 15 minutes. The average life expectancy of the Chinese increased from 77.9 years in 2020 to 79.25 years in 2025.
Upholding the public welfare nature of basic medical and health services
China continues to deepen the reform of public hospitals to see that they better serve the public interest, establishing a new operational mechanism that maintains public-welfare nature, motivates staff, and ensures sustainable operation. It aims to resolutely eliminate profit-seeking mechanisms, promote medical service practices, and prevent unreasonable growth in medical costs, enabling the people to access affordable, quality, and trustworthy medical services. Meanwhile, China guides and regulates the development of private hospitals, strengthens their connection with commercial health insurance to meet diverse needs of the people.
Combining tradition with innovation, and empowering Healthy China with technology for a new chapter
China places great importance on scientific and technological innovation in the health sector and on fostering new quality productive forces. China’s research and development of new drugs accounts for over 20% of the global total, while high-end medical equipment such as fully digital PET/CT can be manufactured in China. Cutting-edge technologies including AI-assisted diagnosis, telemedicine, and surgical robotics, are advancing rapidly. Brain-computer interface technologies have already helped paraplegic patients to stand and walk again, turning what was once the science fiction into reality. China is vigorously promoting inheritance and innovation of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), encouraging the complementary and coordinated development of TCM and Western medicine. TCM has spread to 196 countries and regions worldwide, and, with its ancient wisdom of preventive treatment of disease, is working in synergy with modern medicine to form a unique bond that fosters closer ties among peoples and safeguards global health. Adhering to a prevention-oriented approach, China has built a robust public health system. China advocates healthy and positive lifestyles and promotes the integration of national fitness and public health. It is also committed to fostering a green, safe, and healthy environment, and to better balancing the relationship between humanity and nature. From the blueprint outlined in the “Healthy China 2030” initiative to the implementation of strengthening the foundations of health system during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China is gradually shifting the priority of its health sector from treating disease to enhancing people’s health.
Actively advancing the building of a global community of health for all
In the face of global public health security challenges, President Xi Jinping has proposed building a global community of health for all, widely welcomed by the international community. China firmly supports multilateralism and the WHO’s leadership and coordination in global public health affairs, and has scaled up financial support to the WHO and other relevant organizations through various channels. China also has been deeply involved in consultations on international rules, including the Pandemic Agreement, and signed cooperation agreements on health with over 160 countries and international organizations, thus continuously building consensus for promoting health and well-being for people around the world. China has also extended timely assistance to friend countries in needs. For 63 consecutive years, Chinese medical teams have been dispatched to 77 countries. More than 30,000 Chinese medical personnel have worked on the front lines of global public health, delivering medical care to over 300 million patients.
The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) is an old friend and good partner of China. Under the guidance of the two heads of state, bilateral cooperation in the health sector has been continuously deepened. In April 2024, President Xi Jinping and President Wesley W. Simina jointly witnessed the signing of Protocol Between the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia on Dispatching China Medical team to work in the FSM. The Chinese medical team arrived in the FSM and commenced clinical services in October of the same year. Over the year, Chinese doctors learned from local doctors, serving the local people with sincerity and expertise. The vivid scenes remain fresh in our memory: donating medicines and medical equipment, conducting community outreach clinics, treating difficult and complicated cases with traditional Chinese medicine techniques such as acupuncture, tui na (Chinese therapeutic massage), cupping, and scraping therapy, and successfully performing the first-ever precision enucleation of maxillary cyst. These moments compose a vivid chapter of China-FSM friendship in the medical field.
The year 2026 marks the beginning of China’s 15th Five-Year Plan, and implementing the Healthy China Initiative has entered a new phase of quality enhancement and efficiency improvement. On social media, the world is turning its attention to Healthy China. Adopting Chinese healthy lifestyles, sharing traditional Chinese medical practices, and comparing the medical service costs among China and Western countries are becoming popular topics in world netizens.
A just cause finds great support, and a journey with many companions gets far. China stands ready to work with the FSM and all other countries to uphold the principle of putting the people and their lives above all else, take health as a bridge and cooperation as a bond, and jointly write a new chapter in building a global community of health for all.