Briefly

5 dead, 17 injured in Sichuan wall collapse

Five people were killed and 17 others injured following a wall collapse in Yibin city, Southwest China's Sichuan province, local authorities said on Wednesday. The accident happened around 5:30 pm on Tuesday in a village in Changning county, the local emergency management bureau said. An investigation into the accident showed that a villager was holding a courtyard banquet at home, and excessive water accumulated on a temporary rain shelter caused the wall — used to anchor the shelter — to collapse, according to the bureau. Three people were killed at the scene, while two others died after medical treatment failed. The other 17 injured people are currently receiving medical treatment. Local authorities launched an immediate response following the incident and arranged temporary accommodation for affected personnel. Authorities are now sparing no effort to treat the injured and advance comprehensive aftermath disposal work.

Insurance drives assisted reproduction

A total of 139,700 babies were born through assisted reproductive services covered by China's medical insurance in the first half of 2026, the National Healthcare Security Administration said on Wednesday. Nationwide, medical insurance covered 1.71 million visits for assisted reproductive services during the period, with the number of visits rising steadily, according to the NHSA. Based on the first-half figures, nearly 300,000 babies are expected to be born with the support of China's medical insurance policy for assisted reproduction in 2026, the administration said. During the first six months of 2026, the direct costs of assisted reproduction services totaled 2.97 billion yuan ($437 million), with the medical insurance fund covering more than 1.9 billion yuan of the expenses. Since Jan 1,2025, 32 provincial-level regions nationwide have included eligible assisted reproductive services under medical insurance coverage.

XINHUA