The Pulse：Two meetings in Beijing & development of Chinese medicine

It’s that time of the year for the “two sessions”, the meetings of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and the National People’s Congress.
There has been a little more controversy than usual this year, both inside and outside the country, because the party leadership has proposed removing the constitutional restriction on the president and vice president serving more than two consecutive terms. The Pulse’s Yvonne Tong is in Beijing.
In last Wednesday’s Budget, the government announced that it’s planning to increase spending on public healthcare by 13.3% to $71.2 billion. Much of that money is going to public health facilities and services, drug treatment, manpower, and training, but the government is also allocating more resources to the development of Chinese medicine. It has set aside HK$500 million to promote applied research, knowledge exchange, cross-market co-operation and so on. But among those working in the field and training to do so, there’s concern over what they see as a serious imbalance in their profession.
And that’s all we have time for this week. Don’t forget that Sunday is the day for voting in the by-elections to fill the three district seats and one functional constituency seat made vacant after pro-democracy lawmakers were disqualified last year. On Wednesday night, a banner was seen on Beacon Hill, protesting against the original disqualifications and urging people to cast their votes in these elections. Obviously it’s up to you whether you do so and it’s up to us to make sure we’re here next week. So goodbye for now.