As a country facing huge challenges posed by tuberculosis (TB), China is accelerating its efforts to eliminate the disease domestically while making active contributions to the global anti-TB fight.
According to data from the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration, the incidence and mortality rates of TB in China have fallen by 30 percent since 2012.
Since 2012, China has successfully identified and treated approximately 7.85 million cases of pulmonary TB, maintaining a treatment success rate above 90 percent and a relatively low mortality rate, the administration said.
Behind these encouraging figures is a cumulative investment of over 10 billion yuan (about 1.39 billion U.S. dollars) from China's central government into special funds for TB prevention and control, noted Zhao Yanlin, head of the Center for Tuberculosis Prevention and Control under the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC).
To ease the financial burden on TB patients, some local medical insurance bureaus in China have included TB into the category of outpatient chronic and special diseases, which offers higher reimbursement rates and caps than ordinary outpatient diseases, with reimbursement rates exceeding 90 percent.
In Jiangsu Province, thanks to the policy to use certain innovative drugs free-of-charge in medical treatment, the treatment success rate for drug-resistant TB cases has risen to 85.6 percent, said Zhu Limei, an institute director under the province's center for disease control and prevention.
Beyond financial and policy support, China is also committed to innovation, aiming to further enhance TB prevention and treatment.
In Jinxi, a town in Jiangsu, TB detection has shifted from passive to proactive screening, with an AI-powered imaging system and molecular diagnostic technologies now available at the community health center.
"AI can quickly flag lung abnormalities, allowing faster diagnosis at the grassroots level," said Tang Qingyan, a doctor with a local hospital. Currently, the new system and technologies are available in 47 community hospitals across the province, with plans to expand to 100 this year.
In March, Jiangsu's capital city of Nanjing launched one of the country's first zero-cost treatment plan for drug-resistant TB using BPaL -- the latest short-course regimen worldwide. This regimen, featuring drugs such as bedaquiline, pretomanid and linezolid, is expected to shorten the treatment period to just six months and boost the cure rate to over 90 percent.
The first patient to receive the regimen in Nanjing said, "I was under immense pressure, worrying about whether the disease could be cured. This short and effective novel treatment has given me reassurance."
In its national plan for TB prevention and control released in November 2024, China set a clear objective to steadily reduce incidence, maintain low mortality rates, and significantly ease the burden on patients.
Jointly issued by nine authorities, the plan integrates responsibilities across 15 government departments into an accountability framework, strengthening interagency coordination to ensure policy implementation.
"Ending TB requires everyone's effort, not just that of healthcare workers," said an official from the China CDC. In fact, the entire Chinese society is actively working toward the goal of eradicating this deadly disease, the official noted.
Hu Linjia, a university student volunteer, has been visiting local communities and using interactive quizzes to educate the elderly on TB prevention and control.
"Every person made aware of TB brings us one step closer to ending this epidemic," Hu said.
