To learn more about the health plan, let's bring in our reporter Feng Xin. 

Q1: Feng Xin, what are some of the main goals of this health plan?

FX: Well, first of all, it's a very long and compressive plan. This 29-chapter paper pretty much covers all aspects of Chinese people's healthcare issues. I would put them in several main themes.

First and foremost, life and death. We've already covered life expectancy. China wants to raise it to 79 years by 2030. The country also aims to cut the infant morality rate from the current eight in every 1-thousand babies to 5 in 2030. In terms of women giving birth, the target is to reduce their death rate of 20 in every one hundred thousand pregnant women to 12 in the next 14 years.

A second aspect is healthcare. Currently, there are only 2 doctors for every thousand Chinese. The plan is to make it three by 2030. But this is not only about increasing the number of doctors. What's worth noticing is that the blueprint emphasizes that by 2030, all residents should be able to reach a clinic within 15 minutes from home. The country also aims to cut citizens' out of pocket medical expenses, from the current 29 percent of the country's total medical cost to 25 percent in 2030.

And in environment and lifestyle, China plans to increase the days of good air quality to more than 80 percent time of a year from the current 77 percent. The country also plans to encourage more people to exercise regularly, from the current 360 million people to 530 million in 2030. Schools should ensure students to have at least one hour of physical activity every day. So you can see this is a very comprehensive plan.  

Q2: What challenges is China facing in achieving these goals?

Well, China is already facing significant aging problems. The latest official numbers show that people over 60 account for 15 percent of the population. By international conventions, countries that have a population that is 10 percent seniors, are considered aged societies. Obviously, China has crossed this threshold.

And the problem will intensify. After three decades of the one-child policy, families have become smaller, more like a “4+2+1” structure. This means a typical family will have four seniors, two adults and a single child. So, young people are facing heavy financial pressure in supporting the older generation. And with the second-child policy in effect, the family structure for many might become 4+2+2, meaning the adults will face even greater financial burdens. As life expectancy continues to increase, pension issues will become more urgent than ever.

Now, we touched upon the second-child policy. A lot of women who are having a second child are at an advanced maternal age. This increases health risks for both the mother and baby.  How to cope with this will also be a challenge for China.

In addition, the country faces various challenges from the environment, food safety, industrial development and economic growth.  China needs to addresses multiple aspects of problems for its people to become healthier.