China to speed up cutting cancer treatment prices: Premier

Responding to recent heated public debate about the movie "Dying to Survive", China's Premier Li Keqiang has called for the government to move faster to cut the prices of anti-cancer drugs, and take greater efforts to ensure their supply, reports thepaper.cn.

Premier Li Keqiang at a hospital [Photo: gov.cn]

"Dying to Survive" is a dramatized account of the true story of a leukemia patient who smuggled a generic cancer treatment medication from India to China for himself and fellow patients who couldn't afford the high price licensed version available in China.

The film has been a box office success, raking in more than 2.5 billion yuan (about 373 million U.S. dollars) so far. It has also sparked heated discussion about the price of imported cancer treatment drugs.

Promotional poster for the movie "Dying to Survive". [Photo: gov.cn]

"Complaints from patients with cancer or other severe diseases about the high prices... and short supply of imported drugs reflects the urgent need to cut prices and guarantee the supply of imported drugs. Measures taken by the State Council should be implemented as soon as possible," said Premier Li.

In April and June, the State Council removed tariffs on imported drugs, accelerated approvals for the domestic use of drugs recently approved in overseas markets, reduced the prices of cancer treatment drugs, and took steps to better guarantee drug supplies.