For the purpose of maintaining fairness and efficiency in resolving medical malpractice disputes, the State Council has promulgated the Regulations for the Resolution of Medical Malpractice (the "Regulations"), which will come into effect 1 September 2002. The legislation goes to great effort to provide more practical rules definitions of medical malpractice, identification of damage grades, technological appraisals, administrative procedures and compensation guidelines. As a result, patients and medical organizations may perhaps more efficiently and effectively resolve disputes. The primary features of the Regulations are:

Strict liability for medical organizations

Medical organizations shall establish and maintain patient medical files and disclose those files to the investigators and the patient for damage identification. Where the medical organization fails to provide such files (or fails to provide in a timely manner, causing the case assessment to be compromised), the medical organization shall be in violation of the Regulations.

Independent appraisal organizations

The Chinese Association of Medical Science (CAMS), an independent organization, has replaced the previously used administrative appraisal center for use in assessing malpractice claims. CAMS will prepare a register of experts' names for the parties to use in setting up an appraisal panel to consider the conflict.

Judicial Remedies

Under the new legislation, the parties may have the option to resolve disputes through administrative procedures, or by filing an action before the judge. The Regulations provide the parties with a more direct system of dispute resolution in medical malpractice cases.

──Linus Zhu