Vientiane, Laos - Communist Laos this week agreed to provide free health care for children under five and free maternity care for the poor, media reports said Thursday.

The policy was one of several documents approved at the government's monthly meeting on Tuesday at the Prime Minister's Office, the Vientiane Times reported.

The cabinet has instructed the Health Ministry to formulate a decree to implement the newly-approved policy, which is expected to take effect next fiscal year starting October 1.

Laos, one of the world's few remaining communist regimes, offers a notoriously poorhealth service to its population of 6 million, many of whom live in remote mountainous areas.