Recently, the Provincial Federation of Trade Unions and the Provincial Healthcare Security Administration jointly issued the "Implementation Plan for the Zhejiang Province New Employment Form Workers' Insurance Assistance Action (2026-2028)." Through the dual empowerment of "basic medical insurance coverage + trade union mutual medical assistance," the plan aims to provide insurance assistance to one million instances for gig workers across the province over three years, effectively enhancing the medical security level for this group.
The Implementation Plan sets specific targets and tasks. For gig workers who are first-time enrollees in Zhejiang's urban employee basic medical insurance and join a trade union, full coverage of employee mutual medical assistance will be provided at no cost. For those who continuously participate in Zhejiang's urban employee basic medical insurance and are union members, a premium subsidy of no less than 50% will be granted when enrolling in the employee mutual medical assistance program. In areas where the local employee mutual medical assistance is applicable to participants of Zhejiang's urban and rural resident basic medical insurance, the aforementioned enrollment gift (subsidy) policy will be implemented.
How will this be carried out specifically? The Implementation Plan outlines the following measures:
Extensive Promotion and Mobilization Local trade unions, in collaboration with healthcare security departments, will regularly visit platform enterprise branches and grassroots sites, casual labor markets, outdoor worker service stations, live-streaming industry parks, and trade unions in new business sectors—areas where gig workers are concentrated. Through distributing promotional materials, displaying policy boards, and playing informational videos, they will conduct precise "cost-calculation" and "case-study" style explanations. This will comprehensively promote and interpret the policies of basic medical insurance and employee mutual medical assistance, as well as their combined protective effects, actively organizing and mobilizing gig workers to enroll.
Information Verification and Confirmation Local trade unions will update the personal information lists of gig workers monthly. They will request the healthcare security departments to verify participation in urban employee basic medical insurance and urban/rural resident basic medical insurance, and to process and confirm the insured status of individuals intended for subsidies. Based on the provided lists, the healthcare security departments will monthly supply information on gig workers who are first-time (new) enrollees. Re-enrollment after a lapse in coverage within the province will not be considered first-time enrollment. Switching from urban/rural resident basic medical insurance to urban employee basic medical insurance within the province, or re-enrolling within the province after a coverage lapse from outside the province, will be considered first-time enrollment. For those not yet union members, trade unions at all levels will promptly facilitate their membership.
Insurance Procedure Handling Local trade unions will promptly handle the enrollment procedures for employee mutual medical assistance for eligible individuals. For programs with group enrollment restrictions, conditions will be appropriately relaxed. Where multiple assistance programs are available, local trade unions will select a combination of projects. For enrollments processed within the current coverage year where the remaining coverage period exceeds six months, the full premium will be charged, and benefits will commence the following month. If the remaining period is less than two months, enrollment will be scheduled for the next year. For a remaining period between two and six months, a half-year premium will be charged, with benefits starting the following month.
Data Compilation and Reporting Municipal-level trade union federations must compile and submit to the Provincial Federation of Trade Unions' Security Department, by November 20 each year, the following: a list of individuals receiving full premium coverage, a list of those receiving a subsidy of no less than 50%, and an overview table of the overall situation of the insurance assistance action.
Subsidy Fund Allocation The funds required for the full premium coverage and the subsidies of no less than 50% will be initially advanced by municipal and county (city, district) level trade union federations. After annual consolidation and settlement, the costs will be shared among provincial, municipal, and county-level trade union federations. The Provincial Federation of Trade Unions will subsidize up to 60 RMB per person for those receiving full coverage and up to 30 RMB per person for those receiving a subsidy of no less than 50%. If the actual premium is lower than these standards, the subsidy will be based on the actual cost. Subsidy funds will be included in the Provincial Federation of Trade Unions' budget for the following fiscal year. They will be allocated after being submitted for review and approval according to relevant procedures of the Provincial Federation. The cost-sharing ratios for municipal and county-level trade union federations will be determined by the respective municipal trade union federations.
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