State Council to study and optimize centralized procurement: the 11th batch of drug procurement is coming soon, adjustments to the pricing mechanism are imminent.

Recently, Premier Li Keqiang presided over an executive meeting of the State Council to discuss measures to optimize the centralized procurement of drugs and consumables. Senior medical reform expert Xu Yucai stated that the State Council has proposed to optimize the procurement policy to ensure the quality of drugs and make the public feel more confident in using them. From this perspective, it is possible that some centralized procurement drugs may have quality issues, and the procurement policy needs to be optimized. Therefore, this year's procurement will focus more on quality, but the question is how to prioritize it. Currently, there is no very perfect solution, and further exploration is needed. Several industry professionals also indicated that the current centralized procurement-related work is progressing in an orderly manner, but the start of the 11th batch this year may be slightly later than expected. Theoretically, it could start in summer, autumn, or winter. Some industry insiders also told reporters that it may be necessary to wait for the official implementation of the "further optimization of drug procurement policy" before carrying out procurement according to the new policy requirements.