Greater Reimbursement Opportunities for Innovative Therapies in China – An Analysis of 2017 National Drug Price Negotiations

The recent national drug price negotiations in China and subsequent national reimbursement drug list (NRDL) inclusion for select innovative medications have opened the door to new marketing and reimbursement possibilities. The negotiations seem to be ushering in a new era where manufacturers are operating in a larger reimbursed market and Chinese patients are offered cost relief. Simon-Kucher analyzed the negotiation results, and identified insights and key learnings for manufacturers.

Growing reimbursement opportunity for innovative drugs

Marketing high-cost, innovative drugs in the Chinese market has been a long-standing struggle for manufacturers given low patient out-of-pocket (OOP) potential and reimbursement challenges. Innovative drugs are typically launched in China without reimbursement, which means manufacturers typically rely on patients to pay OOP for their product for at least three to five years after launch before achieving…