Shanghai adds hospice beds as population ages

Shanghai will step up its development of hospice care by adding 1,000 beds for palliative care this year.

At least one hospice has already been set up in each of the city's districts, and authorities plan to expand the coverage of such services citywide within three years, according to the Shanghai Health and Family Planning Commission.

"With the rapid growth of the aging population, the incidence of cancer and other chronic non-communicable diseases keeps rising year by year. Hospice care has become an important part of public health services," said Huang Hong, deputy director of the commission.