BEIJING - Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang said the country would fight the toughest battle to reform the health care system in 2011, as he called for practical measures towards accomplishing the reform.

Li made the remarks while addressing a national meeting on deepening China's reform of health care system on Tuesday, according to an official statement sent to Xinhua on Wednesday.

Citing the reform as a key project that involves public interests, Li called for efforts to ensure the people's universal access to basic medical insurance and basic health care services.

Li added that China would largely raise the level of government subsidies for medical insurance schemes in both rural and urban areas and increase government spending on public health care services this year.

Efforts would be made to let insured people get a higher ratio of reimbursement for their inpatient medical treatments as well as for their outpatient medical treatments for severe diseases, Li said.

He added that the basic medicine system, which aims to ensure affordable access to crucial drugs for patients, should be implemented across government-run grassroots hospitals and clinics in 2011.

Furthermore, Li said that comprehensive reforms including the separation of medical treatment services and medicine sales would be initiated in government-run hospitals in 16 cities this year.