BEIJING - Chinese citizens are paying less proportion of their total health spending than ten years ago, according to Minister of Health Chen Zhu.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Chen said the country has increased health resources with its financing structure being more efficient, and basic medical services having largely improved.

According to statistics released at the conference, the national total health expenditure in 2011 reached 2.42 trillion yuan ($383 billion), 5.1 percent of the GDP. The health expenditure paid individually decreased to 34.9 percent in 2011, from 57.7 percent in 2002.

The statistics show that government and social expenditure covered 30.4 percent and 34.7 percent in 2011, while the figures were 15.7 percent and 26.6 percent respectively in 2002.

Chen said the medical care system has covered more than 1.3 billion people, more than 95 percent of the total population, and 832 million people have joined the new rural cooperative medical system as of 2011.

The use of health services has grown significantly, with the total number of outpatients up from 2.15 billion people in 2002 to 6.27 billion people in 2011, Chen said.

Chinese citizens also have more convenient access to health care services, Chen said, adding that the number of residents within 15 minutes walking distance to hospitals has risen from 80.7 percent in 2003 to 83.3 percent in 2011.

Also at the conference, Chen said that China's health sector has experienced tremendous progress, including the primary establishment of a health service system in both urban and rural areas.

"China has enhanced the capacity of disease prevention and control, expanded the coverage of health insurance, and finished the preliminary establishment of the drug system, leading to a comprehensive development of the health sector," Chen said.

Statistics from the ministry shows that the average life expectancy rose to 74.8 in 2010 from 71.4 in 2000, and the infant mortality rate decreased to 12.1 per thousand in 2011 from 29.2 per thousand in 2002.

Chen also said that the gap in health development between the urban and rural areas is diminishing.

In 2003, the basic health insurance covered 55 percent and 21 percent in urban and rural regions, while the figures are 89 percent and 97 percent in 2011, with the health insurance coverage rate in rural areas more than that in the cities, he added.

By the end of June 2012, 343,641 rural Chinese had been covered by a medical insurance program designed to provide financial aid to seriously ill patients, Chen said.