health care products

Healthcare services in China are under increasing pressure from a demographically ageing population. In addition, medicine is a technology-driven market, with new treatments and procedures continually expanding the scope of care. The Government has been trying to contain costs and improve efficiency in the public sector through significant increases in funding, coupled with the use of increasingly tough targets. In addition, the Government has recently been introducing reforms aimed at the decentralization of decision making, and the reduction of bureaucracy and administrative costs. The private sector has responded to funding pressures and the drive for cost efficiency by adding value to services, which broadens the scope of these services. The result has been a significant rise in acquisition and merger activities within the private sector, creating large companies that operate across the continuum of healthcare, with greater flexibility and economies of scale. At the other end of the spectrum, conditions have become increasingly difficult for small, independent operators.