In 2022, the healthcare system in China had 3,523 tier-three hospitals and over 11,000 tier-two hospitals.
Three-tier hospital system
Most Chinese hospitals are categorized into one of three tiers. Tier-three hospitals are the most advanced and specialized institutions, sometimes affiliated with universities, that can provide comprehensive treatments and surgical operations, while tier-one hospitals are designed to provide less complex and more routine medical services and care.
An unbalanced healthcare system
Unlike many other countries, most hospitals in China, including tier-three hospitals, can accept patients directly without general practitioners’ referrals. More qualified medical staff also tend to be concentrated in tier-three hospitals as they offer better research platforms and higher salaries.
This has resulted in constantly overcrowded hospitals in China’s cities. Regulators have been trying to reform the system over the past decade, with improvements to primary healthcare institutions, and higher reimbursement rates for medical costs incurred in these facilities.
However, for many, hospitals remained the optimal choice for medical treatments of all kinds. Some tier-three hospitals have, therefore, undergone major expansions to facilitate market demands. With a large population and insufficient medical resources, the central province of Henan has many patients traveling to other regions for medical treatments, resulting in an outflow of medical insurance funds from the province. In recent years, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University in the provincial capital has expanded to over 10,000 beds, generating an annual revenue of over ten billion yuan, making it the largest hospital in China.
Number of hospitals in China in 2022, by classification
According to the “Regulation on hospital classifications", Chinese hospitals are divided into three tiers.
A tier one hospital is a community hospital or clinic that is responsible for providing primary medical services and care.
A tier two hospital is a regional hospital that provides comprehensive medical and health services to several communities and performs certain teaching and scientific research tasks.
A tier three hospital is an institution that provides high-level specialized medical and health services to several regions and performs higher teaching and research tasks.
Profit from the additional features of your individual account
Currently, you are using a shared account. To use individual functions (e.g., mark statistics as favourites, set
statistic alerts) please log in with your personal account.
If you are an admin, please authenticate by logging in again.
Learn more about how Statista can support your business.
gov.cn. (October 12, 2023). Number of hospitals in China in 2022, by classification [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved October 07, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1364733/china-number-of-hospitals-by-classification/
gov.cn. "Number of hospitals in China in 2022, by classification." Chart. October 12, 2023. Statista. Accessed October 07, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1364733/china-number-of-hospitals-by-classification/
gov.cn. (2023). Number of hospitals in China in 2022, by classification. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: October 07, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1364733/china-number-of-hospitals-by-classification/
gov.cn. "Number of Hospitals in China in 2022, by Classification." Statista, Statista Inc., 12 Oct 2023, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1364733/china-number-of-hospitals-by-classification/
gov.cn, Number of hospitals in China in 2022, by classification Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1364733/china-number-of-hospitals-by-classification/ (last visited October 07, 2024)
Number of hospitals in China in 2022, by classification [Graph], gov.cn, October 12, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1364733/china-number-of-hospitals-by-classification/