The Ministry of Finance of China issued a notice on Monday stating that, effective May 1, 2018, adjustments will be made to import tariffs on certain drugs. This adjustment will abolish import tariffs on 28 types of drugs, and the vast majority of imported drugs, especially anti-cancer drugs that are actually imported, will be subject to zero tariffs.
An article published on the Ministry of Finance website states that with the implementation of a series of comprehensive measures—such as significantly reducing value-added tax burdens on the production and import of anti-cancer drugs, adopting centralized government procurement, timely inclusion of imported innovative drugs (especially anti-cancer drugs) into the medical insurance reimbursement catalog, and accelerating the import and market launch of innovative drugs—the financial burden of medication for domestic patients, particularly cancer patients, will be further reduced, and they will have more treatment options.
The notice points out that after the adjustment, with the exception of a few varieties such as Angong Niuhuang Wan and other traditional Chinese specialty drugs, as well as certain alkaloid drugs, the vast majority of imported drugs, especially anti-cancer drugs that are actually imported, will be subject to zero tariffs.
