China cuts prices for 70 more drugs after talks with pharmaceutical firms
- National regulator says many imports will have ‘the lowest price in the world’ after new products, including cancer drugs, are added to the country’s list of subsidised treatments
- High drug costs have long been a major barrier to improving health care, a problem highlighted in last year’s hit movie Dying To Survive
China has added the largest ever batch of new products to its list of subsidised drugs in a move that will see the cost of many of them more than halved.
Seventy drugs were added to the national reimbursement list at the end of the November, many of them cancer and anti-infective treatments, after extensive negotiations with pharmaceutical companies.
“The number of new drugs and the total amount of medications negotiated have reached a new record. Many imported drugs will have the lowest price in the world,” the National Healthcare Security Administration said.
High drug prices, especially for cancer treatments, have long been a problem in China’s health care system.
He was arrested in late 2014 for selling counterfeit drugs. However, several hundred of his customers petitioned the court for leniency and Lu was released in January 2015 without charge.
The film prompted a response from Premier Li Keqiang two weeks after its release, urging regulators to “speed up price cuts for cancer drugs” and “reduce the burden on families”.