• Harry H X Wang, Jia Ji Wang, Samuel Y S Wong, Martin C S Wong, Stewart W Mercer, and Sian M Griffiths.
• School of Public Health, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510080, P.R. China JC School of Public Health and Primary Care, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong General Practice and Primary Care, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 9LX, UK.
• Br. Med. Bull. 2015 Jan 1; 116: 139-53.

IntroductionThis review outlines the development of China's primary care system, with implications for improving equitable health care.Sources Of DataGovernment documents, official statistics, and recent literature identified through systematic searches performed on NCBI PubMed.Areas Of AgreementCommunity health centres (CHCs) are being developed as the major primary care provider in urban China, with laudable achievements. The road towards a strong primary care-led system is promising but challenging.Areas Of ControversyThe effectiveness in improving equitable care through the expansion of primary care workforce and redesign of the social medical insurance system warrants further exploration.Growing PointsHealthcare disparities exist in the health system wherein universal health coverage and gatekeepers have not yet been established.Areas Timely For Developing ResearchFuture prospective studies should aim to provide solutions for strengthening the leading role of CHCs in providing equitable care in response to population ageing and multimorbidity challenges.© The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

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