Does the leading pharmaceutical reform in China really solve the issue of overly expensive healthcare services? Evidence from an empirical study

摘要

BackgroundHealthcare system reform of Sanming city has become a leading healthcare reform model in China. It has developed a rigorous pharmaceutical reform consisted of the Zero Mark-up Drug Policy and the Centralized Procurement of Medicine Policy to bring down drug expenses and total health expenditures. However, despite the credit and much attention have been given to Sanming’s pharmaceutical reform, its impact still remains unclear. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the impact of the pharmaceutical reform of Sanming on both drug and total health expenditures.