China's National Healthcare Security Administration announced this week that 199 innovative medicines have been added to the national medical insurance reimbursement list through eight consecutive years of catalog negotiations. The expansion marks a 14% increase in covered treatments compared to 2025, with a focus on therapies for chronic diseases and rare disorders.
Since the program's inception, the medical insurance fund has disbursed 504.8 billion yuan ($74.04 billion) for negotiated drugs through February 2026. This investment has generated 740 billion yuan in total pharmaceutical sales while providing critical treatment access to 1.17 billion patients nationwide.
The updated formulary takes effect June 1, 2026, with price reductions averaging 61.7% for newly added drugs. Analysts note the policy strengthens China's position as the world's second-largest pharmaceutical market while improving affordability for conditions like diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
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199 innovative drugs added to China's medical insurance list
cgtn.com
