No tariffs on targeted cancer drugs will reduce the price pain for patients

PREMIER LI KEQIANG promises zero tariff rates for targeted cancer drugs at a news conference after the two sessions in Beijing on Tuesday. Thepaper.cn comments:

It is estimated more than 2 million people die of cancer in China each year. If there are zero tariffs, the retail price of the imported lifesaving drugs used in targeted cancer therapies will drop markedly. Their high prices have resulted in a large number of cancer patients exhausting their savings to extend their lives for a short time.

Some imported targeted cancer therapies can cost a patient as much as 10,000 yuan ($1,579) a dose as they are not covered by the medical insurance system. The high prices mean many patients have to give up their treatment.