Why Choose China for Medical Care

The reasons

Here are nine reasons why patients from abroad choose China.

1. Public price rules

Public hospitals in China follow prices set by the government. Each province sets the price list for its public hospitals. Private hospitals set their own prices.

Some hospitals also have special-needs (特需) or international departments. These departments set their own prices. A national rule says at least 90% of a public hospital's services must be standard care for ordinary patients. Special-needs services can be 10% at most. Prices differ from department to department, so check them in the hospital's mini-program before you book.

China also buys many medicines and devices in national bulk rounds. By the end of 2024, there had been 10 rounds for 435 medicines. Heart stent prices fell by 93% on average.

Dental implants are a clear example. At large public hospitals (Class 3), the target price for the full implant service is 4,500 yuan or less per tooth. This does not include the implant and the crown. Bulk buying brought the average implant price down to just over 900 yuan, 55% lower than before.

2. A large, graded hospital system

At the end of 2024, China had 38,710 hospitals: 11,754 public and 26,956 private. Of these, 4,111 were Class 3 hospitals, the highest grade. 1,876 of them were Class 3A. In 2024, Class 3 hospitals handled 2.87 billion patient visits.

By 2021, China had 50 national clinical research centres in 20 disease fields.

3. Experience with common cancers

Some cancers are common in China, so specialist doctors there treat them every day. In 2022, China had about:

• 367,700 new cases of liver cancer;
• 358,700 new cases of stomach cancer;
• 224,000 new cases of oesophageal (food pipe) cancer;
• 51,000 new cases of nasopharyngeal (nose and throat) cancer, mostly in southern provinces such as Guangdong and Guangxi.

4. Stroke and brain care

In 2021, China had 4.09 million new strokes. About 26.34 million people were living after a stroke.

In 2021, the government set up a national medical centre for neurological (brain and nerve) diseases.

5. Care for children

In 2023, China had 162 children's hospitals.

In April 2026, the government expanded its national network for children's care. China now has 5 national children's medical centres and 9 national children's regional medical centres.

Since 2018, a national programme checks newborn babies for heart problems.

6. Health check-ups

Many large public hospitals have their own health check-up centre that sells self-pay packages. Prices differ from hospital to hospital, so check them in the hospital's mini-program before you book.

7. Treatments and devices approved in China

China approves new treatments and devices through its national regulator (NMPA). In 2022, China approved its first home-made four-arm surgical robot.

In 2025, China approved a home-made deep brain stimulation (DBS) system.

In 2026, China approved a CAR-T cell therapy for a type of advanced stomach cancer.

8. Eye care at scale

China now does more than 3,500 cataract operations per million people each year.

A national plan aims for more than 4,000 per million people by 2030.

9. Traditional Chinese medicine

China has its own medical tradition, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). At the end of 2024, China had 6,397 TCM hospitals. This includes 796 hospitals that combine Chinese and Western medicine.

In 2024, these hospitals had about 843 million patient visits. If you use any TCM medicines, tell all of your doctors.

International patients already come

A national report on medical care for foreigners says that in 2025, China's key hospitals for foreign patients had 1.28 million international patient visits. This was 73.6% more than three years before.

Some patients also go to special medical zones. In 2025, more than 9,300 overseas patients from 14 countries and regions came to the Boao Lecheng medical zone. It is on Hainan, an island province in southern China.

What to check before you go

• Ask which department will treat you. Standard, special-needs and international departments have different prices. Check them in the hospital's mini-program.
• Bring your medical records. Bring your recent reports and scans. Ask for CT and MRI scans as image files, not only printed pages.
• Check the visa rules for your country.
• Plan how you will pay. Most hospitals ask for a deposit. Some insurers can pay the hospital directly.
• Plan for language. Most hospital staff speak Chinese only.
• Find a hospital with an international department. Use our table of international patient services at Chinese hospitals.
• Expect busy public hospitals. Large public hospitals see very many patients each day. Plan extra time for each visit.
• Plan your recovery and trip home. Ask your doctor when it is safe to fly, and how follow-up care will work in your home country.
• For beauty treatments, use licensed places only. By law, only medical institutions licensed for medical beauty can offer it.
• Be careful with unapproved treatments. Since May 2026, Chinese law says new treatments that work on human cells must first be tested in registered research, and patients in that research must not be charged. Be careful with any clinic that sells such a treatment, for example some stem cell offers.

Before you travel, read our other planning guides. For visas, read Medical Visa for China. For paying, read Paying at Chinese Hospitals. For language help, read Medical Interpreters at Chinese Hospitals. For hospital departments, read Chinese Hospital Service Levels. For hospital grades, read How Chinese Hospitals Are Classified.