China plans to launch the centralized procurement of anti-cancer drugs at the provincial level in order to reduce the prices of antineoplastics through their bulk purchase.

Earlier this year, Premier Li Keqiang said at an executive meeting of the State Council, China's Cabinet, that China will reduce its tariffs on imported anti-cancer drugs. They were subsequently abolished on May 1.

The provincial centralized purchasing of anti-cancer drugs aims to now further reduce the prices of anti-cancer drugs to ease patients' economic burden. According to the media, the State Medical Insurance Bureau recently held a medicine centralized purchasing meeting in Shanghai to solicit opinions on the provincial special purchase of anti-cancer drugs in the Medical Insurance Directory.

The special centralized provincial purchase of anti-cancer drugs will basically cover all the imported anti-cancer drugs with zero tariffs, and the local authorities will expand the scale of the centralized provincial purchasing of anti-cancer drugs according to the local usage of antineoplastics.

China is the second-largest pharmaceutical market in the world after the United States and a key growth market for cancer therapeutics. The government should make its purchases with a tough attitude and further encourage pharmaceutical companies to take the initiative to cut prices.