Prevention Is Better Than Cure

In China, generally speaking, only those who work for the government or big enterprises have access to regular physical checkups. For Chinese farmers, many have never had a physical examination, let alone a free one.

In three years from 2007, 110,000 farmers aged above 18 under the jurisdiction of Beijing’s Haidian District will be given free physical checkups, as part of the new rural cooperative medical system. By the end of July, 47,000 farmers had been informed of the result of the check-ups and operation that cost the district government tens of millions of yuan.

Regular checks can prevent the deterioration of some chronic diseases, which will help save potential medical expenses. The current cooperative medical system focuses too much on the treatment of fatal diseases after they have been diagnosed, so in this sense, the free physical examinations will effectively make up for the deficiencies of the medical system.

To expand the coverage of free examinations requires funds, but in many economically underdeveloped central and western regions, local governments alone cannot manage to offer this service. There is also a lack of basic medical resources in these areas, such as hospitals and doctors. It’s never an easy job to conduct free physical checkups for local farmers. Therefore, it’s necessary to offer some financial support to these areas, so that more farmers can benefit from this practice.

Beijing Youth Daily

A Waste of Energy

On August 5, an ice sculpture show was opened in Wuhan, capital of central China’s Hubei Province, which is considered one of China’s hottest cities-temperature wise that is. Inside the icehouse, spectators walk through a world of ice, wearing overcoats, while outside people are sweating as the sun beats down.

It is conservatively estimated that the 1,500-square-meter exhibition will burn more than 10,000 kwh of electricity every day, as the ice works must be maintained below minus 6 degree Centigrade.

It isn’t hard to imagine how much electricity the entire exhibition will use. Hubei is hungry for electricity. In January this year, some cities in this province like Yichang, Jingmen and Jinzhou suffered from serious power shortages. Although Wuhan, as the provincial capital city, was exempt from the shortage, the summer isn’t over and the electricity consumption is still on the rise.

The attraction of ice sculptures must be hard to resist in such sweltering heat, and it’s quite possible that this sculpture show will produce large profits. However, when the whole country is trying to save much needed energy, it seems that the profits the show has brought can never make up for what it has cost.

Changjiang Times

The Hidden Cost of Speed

Five major Chinese airlines operating the lucrative Beijing-Shanghai route teamed up to launch an express service program on August 6, with a flight every 30 minutes. Passengers can now fly at any time with any airline of their choice. The only visible cost is more expensive tickets.

Industry insiders reveal that the participating airlines, previously longtime business competitors, have already reached a price consensus, after many rounds of negotiation, that the maximum discount should not be more than 30 percent. Previously much higher discounts were available through individual airlines. The reason is that the joint program must be based on the same benchmark price, or airlines will suffer losses when passengers swap carriers frequently. In order to avoid possible losses resulting from complicated balance settlements, the five airlines have united as far as pricing goes.

The alliance is actually a new kind of monopoly or just one step toward overall monopoly. If the trial implementation of the express air service is successful on the Beijing-Shanghai route, it is expected to include more destinations such as Guangzhou and Shenzhen. If that happens, it will ultimately do more harm than good to passengers’ wallets.

Guangzhou Daily

Lift Minimum Wage of Struggling Consumers

From eggs to oil, pork to instant noodles, 2007 has seen price increases in most consumer commodities. There is no shortage of reports on how low-income people are struggling to make ends meet.

Against this background, to peg the minimum wage standard with consumer prices is an urgent necessity. In December 2006, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions announced that it would conduct an overall inspection on how the minimum wage policy was implemented, and would urge local governments to institute timely adjustments to ensure that the minimum wage rose to over 40 percent of the local average wage. All these are beneficial to low-income earners, but given rapid price hikes in 2007, more efforts are needed.

If social security is an effective mechanism to ensure the middle class has a stable life, then to peg the minimum wage standard with consumer prices will be a useful way to ensure the low-income population a relatively decent living standard. Only when the growth of minimum wage is greater than price increases, can the vast majority of ordinary laborers live a stable life.

Oriental Morning Post