Pfizer Won’t Get a Second Chance to Negotiate With China Over Paxlovid This Year, Source Says
Guo Jinhui
DATE:  Jan 19 2023
/ SOURCE:  Yicai
Pfizer Won’t Get a Second Chance to Negotiate With China Over Paxlovid This Year, Source Says Pfizer Won’t Get a Second Chance to Negotiate With China Over Paxlovid This Year, Source Says

(Yicai Global) Jan. 19 -- China will not hold talks with Pfizer again this year to include the US drugmaker’s oral Covid-19 treatment Paxlovid in the list of drugs covered by the state medical insurance system, according to a source.

The National Healthcare Security Administration only negotiates once a year for the inclusion of any particular drug in the medical insurance catalog, said the person, who is involved in the negotiations. The NHSA published the latest annual catalog yesterday.

Paxlovid was not added after talks between the NHSA and New York-based Pfizer failed earlier this month because of the drug's high price. Despite the NHSA showing “great sincerity,” the talks foundered on the wide gap in positions, the person said. 

The NHSA must consider the total cost to the medical insurance program when negotiating with drugmakers, the source added, noting that China has a very large population and Paxlovid can be prescribed to almost all Covid-19 patients, so if the NHSA had accepted Pfizer's asking price, it would be too costly.

Azvudine, a Covid-19 medicine developed by China's Genuine Biotech, was included in the latest list at CNY11.58 (USD1.70) per three-milligram pill, about 35 percent less than the market price.

The cost of newly added drugs fell about 60 percent on average below their market prices after negotiations, the same as in previous years, Huang Xinyu, deputy director of NHSA's department of medical services management, said at a press conference held yesterday to unveil the new catalog.

The adjustments made to drug prices and medical care reimbursements negotiated for the new list are likely to save patients covered by the insurance a total of more than CNY90 billion (USD13.3 billion) over the next two years, Huang added.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev

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Keywords:   National Drug Reimbursement List,Paxlovid,Pfizer,Medical Insurance Program,Covid-19