Gov't & Regulatory

State FDA (SFDA), Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), Minsitry of Health (MOH) and other China government agency policies and regulations and how they impact the industry...

Recent Articles

China Spent $11.8 Billion on Healthcare Reform in 2010's First Half Jul 21, 2010: China’s central government spent 80 billion RMB ($11.8 billion) to reform the nation’s healthcare system in the first six months of 2010, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). Of that, 53 billion RMB ($7.6 billion) was put into building a basic medical insurance system, and 26 billion RMB ($3.8 billion) went toward equalizing basic health care services in China. The latter probably is a way of saying that money was spent to improve the availability of basic services in rural areas. More details...

Is Johnson & Johnson Involved in Most Recent SFDA Scandal? Jun 24, 2010: According to the Economic Observer, a China-based weekly business publication, the most recent SFDA bribery scandal involves the Shanghai branch of Johnson & Johnson. So far, there has been no official confirmation of the allegation. Johnson & Johnson refused to comment on the matter. More details...

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India Bans Imports from 10 China API Companies Jun 16, 2010: The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) prohibited the importation of APIs from 10 China companies because the companies had not submitted good manufacturing practices (GMP) certificates. India’s only external API suppliers are located in China. The products involved in the ban are used to make anti-infectives and painkillers. More details...

Deputy Director of SFDA Fired Jun 15, 2010: Corruption at the SFDA apparently remains a problem. Zhang Jingli, who has served as Deputy Director of the agency since 2003, has been fired from his post and is being investigated for suspected disciplinary violations, according to sources with the Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. The charge and investigating body suggest that graft and corruption are the unspecified issue. More details...

China Close to Five-Year Plan for Biotech Industry Jun 4, 2010: This month, China will probably submit a draft proposal of a five-year plan for developing its biotech industry. The draft will be written by China’s top economic planning agency and submitted to the State Council, the nation’s highest ruling body. No details of the plan have been publicly disclosed. More details...

China Allocates $5.5 billion to Implement Healthcare Reform Feb 23, 2010: China's Ministry of Finance (MoF) announced Friday that the central government had authorized the spending of 37 billion RMB ($5.5 billion) as part of its larger 850 billion RMB healthcare reform, announced last year. The new money will help give medical care access to lower-income citizens. More details...

China’s State Council Reveals Hospital Reform Plan Feb 4, 2010: China will implement its nationwide public hospital reform by establishing pilot programs that move away from the profit motive, which has been in effect for the past years. The programs will be spread across the country, with at least one located in each province, autonomous region and municipality. Unfortunately, details of the reform plan are sketchy. More details...

China Releases a New National Drug Reimbursement List Dec 2, 2009: On November 30th, China’s MoHRSS (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security) released the 2009 version of the National Drug Reimbursement List, which includes 260 new drugs, bringing it to a total of 2151 products. In the new list, all 307 members of the Essential Drug List are automatically included in the A class, which confers the highest levels of insurance reimbursement on these basic drugs. It was the first update of the Reimbursement List since 2004. More details...

China Reveals 2009 Medical Reform Plans Jul 27, 2009: Last week, the State Council of China detailed its 2009 plans for healthcare reform. China’s national government is committed to a top-to-bottom overhaul of its medical system by 2020, and it is slowly releasing the specific, year-by-year steps it will take to achieve its overarching policy goals. As an example of the unhurried quality of its announcements, the 2009 plans were declared after more than half of the year has passed. More details...

China Unveils 11-Year Health Plan Apr 6, 2009: China has officially unveiled its health plan goals for the next eleven years, ending in 2020, a reform aimed at bringing basic healthcare to all of its 1.3 billion citizens and building up the nation’s public health system. The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council endorsed a broad, ambitious objective: By 2020, China will have a basic health-care system that can provide safe, effective, convenient and affordable health services to urban and rural residents. More details...