Government accelerates approvals for imported medicines

China's State Drug Administration has accelerated the approval of imported drugs that have already been tested and approved for use in overseas markets, reports huanqiu.com.

Medicine [File Photo: IC]

More than 3,800 drugs approved for use overseas have now been cleared for use in China. The approval process for these drugs, which include anticancer, antiviral, and anti-hypertensive medications, have been substantially reduced.

Examples of drugs that have been given accelerated approval include a HPV vaccine to prevent cervical cancer, and third-generation drugs to treat Hepatitis C.

"Applications can be submitted to have drugs that prevent and cure life-threatening diseases, and that lack other treatments, to be available in China using overseas test data, which reduces the time need to get them into the market by two years," said Jiao Hong, director of the State Administration of Drug Supervision.