In order to reduce the pressure on patients, the pilot work of cross provincial and remote medical treatment settlement continued to be promoted. According to the latest news from the National Medical Insurance Bureau, as of the end of April 2022, 74 overall planning regions in China have started the pilot of cross provincial direct settlement of treatment costs related to chronic diseases in outpatient clinics, such as hypertension, diabetes, cancer outpatient radiotherapy and chemotherapy, uremia dialysis, and anti rejection treatment after organ transplantation. At present, the direct settlement of hospitalization expenses and outpatient expenses across provinces runs smoothly and the coverage is further expanded. By the end of April 2022, 57300 designated medical institutions, 61000 designated medical institutions and 127300 designated retail pharmacies had been connected to the national inter provincial direct settlement of hospitalization expenses, outpatient expenses. On the basis of launching the direct inter provincial settlement of hospitalization expenses and outpatient expenses, the direct inter provincial settlement of five kinds of outpatient treatment expenses related to chronic diseases, such as hypertension, diabetes, outpatient radiotherapy and chemotherapy for malignant tumors, uremic dialysis and anti rejection treatment after organ transplantation, was launched nationwide in September 2021, meeting the medical settlement needs of 125million inter provincial floating population. In order to take into account the differences in the range of diseases in different regions, the treatment expenses related to outpatient chronic diseases are settled directly across provinces, using the national unified outpatient chronic diseases code and disease name, and other medical expenses unrelated to outpatient chronic diseases treatment are settled separately as ordinary outpatient expenses. At the time of settlement, the payment scope and relevant provisions of the place of medical treatment shall be implemented, including the payment scope of basic medical insurance drugs, medical service items and medical consumables, and the relevant provisions such as the starting payment standard, payment proportion and maximum payment limit of the medical security fund of the place of insurance shall be implemented. The National Medical Insurance Bureau suggests that the insured can query the opening of the pilot area of cross provincial direct settlement of outpatient diagnosis and treatment expenses related to chronic diseases through the national medical insurance service platform app or website. (Xinhua News Agency)