How Did Zero-Markup Medicines Policy Change Prescriptions in the Eyes of Patients?-A Retrospective Quasi-Experimental Analysis.

Background: China implemented the zero-markup medicines policy to reverse the overuse of medicine in public health institutions, by changing the distorted financing mechanism, which heavily relies on revenue generated from medicines. The zero-markup medicines policy was progressively implemented in city public hospitals from 2015 to 2017.

Objective: This study is expected to generate convincing evidence with subjective measurements and contribute to a more comprehensive evaluation of the policy from both objective and subjective perspectives.

Integrating Health and Care in China: Lessons Learned and Future Outlook.

Background: An aging population is one of the key drivers reshaping health care systems. In China, the complex needs of its huge aging population require integration across the health and care sectors.

Policies And Progress: Over the past decade, the central government of China promulgated a series of policies to promote the establishment of aftercare facilities, specify approaches to integrate health and care service delivery at institutional and community levels, pilot long-term care insurance (LTCI) as a funding mechanism, and reform administrative structures in favor of integration.

Impact of zero-mark-up medicines policy on hospital revenue structure: a panel data analysis of 136 public tertiary hospitals in China, 2012-2020.

Objective: To quantify the overall and dynamic effects of the implementation of the zero-mark-up medicines policy on the proportionate revenue generated from medicines, medical services and government subsidies at Chinese tertiary public hospitals.

Methods: The revenue data of 136 tertiary public hospitals from 2012 to 2020 and the implementation-time framework of zero-mark-up medicines policy of these hospitals were obtained from the institutional survey of the third-party evaluation of the China Healthcare Improvement Initiative. The study adopted the time-varying difference-in-differences method and combined it with the event study approach to estimate the effects of the zero-mark-up medicines policy.

Barriers and Strategies: A Review of Access to Affordable Multi-Drug Resistant Tuberculosis Medication in China.

This study analyzed the barriers of patient access to affordable MDR-TB medication in China and the reasons behind, and proposed strategies towards removing the barriers based on literature review and key informant interviews. Reasons behind the high financial burden of MDR-TB patients in China are the lack of a coordinated and multi-sourced financing model to secure patients' access to the expensive novel medicines, and the absence of the safety-net for the patients with low ability to pay the costs. Appropriate health insurance benefit packages and provider payment mechanisms, supportive legal framework, coordinated policies as well as incentives for off-label use of evidence-based repurposed medicines are missing.