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Potential Expanded Use of Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research in China

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Pharmaceutical Development and Regulation

Abstract

In an era of cost containment and managed care, pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research are increasingly used in both public and private sectors to improve the allocation of healthcare and pharmaceutical resources. While this trend has been well observed in developed nations, little is known about its status in developing countries. This article presents an overview of pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research in China.

This article highlights the increasing demand and great market potential for pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research in China. This is largely based on a number of observations: the impact of China’s growing economy, dominant pharmaceutical expenditures, and World Trade Organization (WTO) entry.

China is among the fastest growing economies. It is currently the seventh largest economy in the world, and is creating a strong income effect on the demand for pharmaceutical use and application of pharmacoeconomics in allocating limited resources. Pharmaceutical expenditure accounts for over 50% of total healthcare costs in China, making the pharmaceutical market a central focus of recent healthcare reforms. Thus, demand for cost-effectiveness data is expected to play an increasingly critical role in shaping both public and private policy making in the pharmaceutical market.

China’s recent entry into the WTO is resulting in unprecedented changes in the pharmaceutical industry. Among other benefits, trade barriers will be reduced substantially, leading to an even more competitive pharmaceutical market than before. Furthermore, mechanisms for market competition are anticipated to change from traditional cost-based pricing to a basis of cost-effectiveness and outcomes assessment as the health insurance, drug distribution, and pharmacy markets become open to foreign vendors.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful for comments and suggestions from Drs Susan Blalock, Andrew Mitchell, Mike Drummond and the participants in the panel discussions at the 7th Annual Meeting of International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR), Washington DC, May 21, 2002. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for their comments. In conducting this study, we received no sources of funding from a third party, and had no conflicts of interest directly relevant to the content of this review.

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  1. Division of Pharmaceutical Policy and Evaluative Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Beard Hall 205, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27599-7360, USA

    Gordon G. Liu & Chunhui Liu

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  1. Gordon G. Liu
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Correspondence to Gordon G. Liu.

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Liu, G.G., Liu, C. Potential Expanded Use of Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research in China. Pharm Dev Regul 1, 169–177 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03257376

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