BEIJING -- China had a total of 26,456 medical device manufacturers at the end of August, up 40 percent year-on-year, official data showed.

To cope with the raging COVID-19 epidemic in the first months of the year, Chinese authorities accelerated the approval of medical devices, according to the National Medical Products Administration.

A total of 49 types of COVID-19 testing kits, two types of blood purification equipment, and eight types of ventilators have been approved for sale or use since the beginning of the year, contributing to the fight against the epidemic.

In a bid to encourage innovation and enhance industrial competitiveness, the administration has made solid progress in promoting reforms in the medical device registration system.

So far, 22 provincial-level regions including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong and Jiangsu have launched trials of the medical device registration system.