Rules issued for online medical advice

Patients seeking medical treatment in China now need to receive a diagnosis in person from a doctor at a hospital before they can access online consultation services, according to new regulations aimed at improving supervision of the nascent internet healthcare industry.

The rules also require online service providers to have cooperation agreements with brick-and-mortar hospitals and say that health professionals must read a patient's medical records before they consult or prescribe medicine over the internet.

The National Health Commission, which released the regulations on Friday, said medical consultants need at least three years of clinical experience in order to provide web services, and only prescriptions for common illnesses and chronic diseases are allowed to be issued online.