Where to apply for chronic disease card

Chronic disease cards in most areas can be processed at community/township medical insurance service points and district-level medical insurance handling centers in insured areas. In some areas where online services have been opened, applications can be submitted directly on the official medical insurance mini-program or APP, without going offline. To put it bluntly, a chronic disease card is an exclusive medical insurance discount card for patients with chronic diseases. It usually prescribes symptomatic chronic disease medications and performs related review items. The reimbursement rate is much higher than that of ordinary medical insurance. Finding the right processing point can save a lot of effort.

When I helped my mother apply for a chronic disease card for hypertension last year, I initially searched for old guides and said that I had to queue up at the medical insurance window at the district government affairs center. Before I left, I casually asked the community grid staff, and I found out that the community party and mass service center downstairs had a special window for medical insurance. I brought her outpatient records and three medical records for the past six months. She submitted the high blood pressure diagnosis certificate and ID card issued by Hospital A in ten minutes, and received the notification of approval within three days. The electronic chronic disease card was directly synced to her electronic medical insurance voucher. When she went to the community hospital to prescribe antihypertensive drugs, she could directly swipe the code to see the chronic disease reimbursement rate, which was nearly 40% higher than that of ordinary medical insurance.

In fact, the degree of decentralization of handling authority is different in different regions, and not all places can apply for it in the community. When my distant cousin applied for a rheumatoid chronic disease card in his hometown county, he was required to go to the chronic disease accreditation clinic of the county people's hospital to issue a qualification certificate, and then took the documents to the county medical insurance center to submit them. It took two trips, but compared to previous years, it was much more convenient to go to the city to apply. Some people say that everything can be done online now, but this is not the case. Digital services in many lower-tier counties and cities have not yet been covered, so offline submission is still the safest way.

The digitization of medical insurance has been advancing rapidly in the past two years, and many provincial capitals and prefecture-level cities have opened full online processing channels. A while ago, I helped Uncle Zhang, who has limited mobility next door, apply for a chronic disease card for diabetes. I directly uploaded his hospitalization records from last year, recent blood sugar monitoring records, and ID card photos to our province’s medical insurance applet. The identification was completed online without leaving the house. He later went to a pharmacy to prescribe anti-diabetic drugs, and he could go directly to chronic disease reimbursement by swiping the electronic medical insurance code. Everyone told me that it is becoming more and more convenient to do things now.

Of course, not everything is so smooth. If you are insured in another place, most areas still require you to go back to the place where you are insured to apply for a chronic disease card. Only a few pilot areas of medical insurance integration in the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta support out-of-town identification. Before applying, it is best to call the national medical insurance service hotline 12393 to inquire about the local processing point and required materials, so as to avoid unnecessary trips. After all, for many patients with chronic diseases who have been taking medicine for a long time and have inconvenience in their legs and feet, having to travel less long distances is a real worry.