<div id="readability-page-1"><div id="news-body">(Yicai) May 18 -- China’s 12th batch of bidding for the state-organized centralized drug procurement program will cover a new record number of over 70 varieties and 233 specifications.The figures were released by the National Organization for Drug Joint Procurement Office on May 15, and they are based on the early filings by pharmaceutical companies. In fact, this is the first batch of centralized drug procurement to feature a pre-filing mechanism, aiming to make the drug selection process more open and transparent.The competition among major varieties is extremely fierce, said Jin Chunlin, director of the Shanghai Health Development Research Center. Some star varieties slated for inclusion, including Entresto‌ (sacubitril valsartan sodium tablets), have recorded annual sales of up to CNY8 billion (USD1.2 billion).For enterprises, the competitive pressure is quite large, as the centralized procurement has a big impact on the market trend of the drug varieties included.Anti-tumor treatments, cardiovascular drugs, diabetes medications, immunosuppressants, and anti-infective drugs will be part of the next batch of centralized drug procurement, all of which are commonly used in hospitals, according to the pre-filing data.On May 1, Shanghai implemented a reform to medical insurance payment, setting the upper limit of medical insurance reimbursement at the selected centralized procurement price. If patients choose non-selected original drugs, they must pay the excess in full now, as the city cracked down on the trend where high-priced drugs received disguised medical insurance subsidies under the ‘proportional reimbursement’ model.The new reimbursement policy has a limited impact on the actual centralized procurement volume, Jin noted, adding that hospitals may be conservative when reporting volumes, but they still need to fulfill the contracted volumes they reported. Meanwhile, most patients will still choose the lower-priced products selected in centralized procurement, unless the original drugs have significantly outstanding clinical value.The National Healthcare Security Administration will further optimize the centralized procurement rules and adopt various methods, such as bidding, inquiry, and comprehensive evaluation, to promote rational competition among enterprises, Shi Zihai, deputy director of the NHSA, said in April.Editor: Futura Costaglione</div></div>

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China's 12th batch of centralized drug procurement will include over 70 varieties and 233 specifications, marking a record high. This batch introduces a pre-filing mechanism for transparency. Major drugs like Entresto, with annual sales of CNY8 billion, face intense competition. The new medical insurance policy limits reimbursements to procurement prices, influencing patient choices towards lower-priced options. The National Healthcare Security Administration plans to enhance procurement rules to foster competition among enterprises.

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China’s 12th Batch of Centralized Drug Procurement to Cover Record Number of Varieties