Access to and Use of Health Care Services by Employees and Their Families

The economic reform process in China, which started in the early 1980s, has resulted in an extended period of rapid growth that has substantially increased the incomes of a majority of the population. But for a sizeable minority the benefits have been much more limited. Both inter-regional and inter-household income inequalities have increased sharply and there are many people still living in poverty (see, for example, China Rural Statistics Yearbook, 1999). These inequalities are reflected in dramatic differences in the health status of those living in poor and rich areas (Hao et al., 1994). One important contributory factor has been a pronounced rise in the cost of access to health services.