An analysis of farmers' perception of the new cooperative medical system in Liaoning Province, China

BACKGROUND: Since 2003, the number of pilot areas of the New Rural Cooperative Medical System (NRCMS) has increased in rural China. And the major efforts have been concentrated on the enrollment of prospective members. In this study, we examined the satisfaction of the rural residents with the NRCMS as well as factors affecting their attitudes towards the NRCMS. METHODS: The data for this study were collected from a survey involving twenty counties in Liaoning Province. Interviews and focus groups were conducted between 10(th )January and 20(th )August 2008. A total of 2,780 people aged 18-72 were randomly selected and interviewed. Data were evaluated by nonparametric tests and ordinal regression models. RESULTS: 71.6% of the study subjects were satisfied with the NRCMS. Single factor analysis showed that attitudes towards the NRCMS were influenced by gender, age, marital status, and self-rated health status. In the ordinal regression analysis, gender, age, and self-rated health status affect satisfaction (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: We found that a considerable proportion of farmers were satisfied with the NRCMS. Gender, age, and self-rated health status had significant effects on farmers' attitudes towards the NRCMS. The Chinese Central Government attempted to adopt active measures in the future to continuously improve the NRCMS, including initiating educational programs, building new medical facilities and increasing financial investment.