Action pledged to build healthy China

National political advisers said they feel encouraged and energized following their recent interaction with President Xi Jinping in Beijing, and pledged to translate his remarks on building a healthy China into efforts ranging from drug innovation and artificial intelligence breakthroughs in medicine to improved grassroots healthcare.

On Friday, Xi held discussions with the advisers attending the fourth session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, China's top political advisory body, as he participated in a joint group meeting with CPPCC National Committee members from the Chinese Peasants and Workers Democratic Party, the Jiusan Society and the sectors of medicine and health, and welfare and social security.

During the meeting, Xi emphasized that the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) period will be crucial for building a "Healthy China by 2035", urging coordinated planning and faster implementation to achieve decisive progress toward the goal.

Jiang Jiandong, a CPPCC National Committee member and professor at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences' institute of pharmaceutical sciences, described the meeting as both motivating and demanding. "President Xi's deep concern for people's health left a very strong impression on me," he said.

Inspired by their discussions, Jiang said he planned to focus on building a more complete system for pharmaceutical innovation in the future — from original scientific discoveries to clinical trials and commercialization.

"Breakthroughs usually begin with particular drug projects, such as medicines for cancer, metabolic diseases, and disorders of the central nervous system," he said.

While highlighting the growing role of AI in drug design and data analysis, Jiang also said that researchers should consider biological intelligence to complement AI and avoid potential pitfalls in algorithm-driven research.

Wang Lu, another CPPCC National Committee member, said that Xi's remarks provided both direction and motivation for those working in the health sector. "We should focus on achieving breakthroughs in key areas, including strengthening the public health service system and promoting the downward flow of quality medical resources," Wang said.

In his own speech during the meeting, Wang highlighted how to raise China's average life expectancy, which currently stands at about 79.2 years. "The country aims to raise the figure to 80 years by 2030," he said.

To address the urban-rural life expectancy gap, Wang called for expanding the use of AI to empower grassroots healthcare systems, noting that AI-assisted diagnosis platforms could enable rural doctors to treat more conditions while improving diagnostic accuracy.

"Village clinics currently handle only a few hundred diseases. With intelligent diagnostic systems, that number could expand to more than 2,000," he said.

Ma Xiuzhen, vice-chairwoman of the Ningxia Hui autonomous region's political advisory body, has spent years studying how digital technology can facilitate healthcare delivery.

She proposed providing every resident with "an intelligent family doctor", powered by AI, which would handle routine consultations, assist with disease screening and relieve pressure on overburdened grassroots doctors.

"The estimated cost of an 'AI family doctor' would be less than 50 yuan per person each year," Ma said, adding that it could help bring medical services directly into people's homes.

During a news conference on Saturday, Lei Haichao, head of the National Health Commission, said that China has been focusing on grassroots healthcare in recent years, with more medical workers serving in urban and rural communities and patients increasingly choosing nearby services.

"Grassroots healthcare institutions handled 52.6 percent of all medical visits in China in 2025, a figure that has been rising in recent years," he said, noting that the improvement in the share of primary-level treatment within the tiered diagnosis system is an encouraging sign.

During Friday's joint group meeting, Pasang Drolma, a high-altitude medicine expert from the Xizang autonomous region, reported progress in the prevention and treatment of altitude sickness on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Years of medical research and advances have helped ensure that major infrastructure projects in the region, such as the Qinghai-Xizang Railway, record no deaths from altitude sickness among workers, she said.

Pasang Drolma said she was particularly inspired by Xi's emphasis on integrating traditional Chinese medicine with modern medical science. "I feel more motivated to lead my team to make new efforts to prevent altitude sickness," she added.

Pan Yiqiao and Zhou Jin contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at zhaoyimeng@chinadaily.com.cn