A Study On The Problems In Medicines Price System In China

AbstractThe continuously increasing medicines price and expenses bring about heavy burden to both patients and the medical and health system of the State, and becomes a hot topic and a popular concern of all people. By applying such theories as price-making, market structure and demand, and by referring to the current situation, features and experience of the medicines price system in foreign countries, this article analyzes first the present situation of the medicines price in China, and the related policy and system constituting the medicines price system, as well as medicines price forming mechanism depending on medicines market structure and demand-supply relations. Then it elaborates the reasons why China's control over medicines price has not obtained the expected results and why the medicines price and cost are still rising are: the medical treatment and medical insurance system currently in effect in China causes hospital's dependence on the income from wholesale and retail price differentials, and causes hospital's special position in medicines circulation, thus leading the medicines market in China at present to actually become an incomplete competitive market under the control of hospital; the demand-supply relations of medicines are not so sensitive to the variations of medicines price, but are related to the price differentials between the retail price (the government's limited price for medicines) and the real cost price (ex-work price) of medicine producer, and the higher the price differentials, the larger the demand ? this kind of deformed price forming mechanism is just the important reason for false and high medicines price and steadily rising medicines cost which are difficult to control. Therefore, the government shall put the stress of medicines price control on assuring effective operation of the market mechanism based on the rules of market economy; while implementing the reform of medicines price system, reform on medical treatment and medical insurance system should also be carried out so as to perfect medical compensation system, cut off the economic connection between hospital and pharmaceutics enterprise, deprive hospital of it's monopoly position, weaken the interests stimulus of wholesale and retail price differentials of medicines to hospital and set up a medicines price forming mechanism mainly on market basis, finally achieve the goal to reduce false and high medicines price and alleviate the burden on patients from medicines expenses.