By Fineline Cube 
The Beijing Municipal Medical Insurance Bureau issued the “Notice on Further Strengthening Price Risk Management for Drug Shortages,” outlining measures to enhance risk prevention, identification, and response for pricing of scarce medications.
Policy Details
For drugs in shortage or those with delivery rates below 10% for three consecutive months across all manufacturers of the same variety in the procurement subsystem, the Bureau will implement direct listing or direct price adjustments on the centralized procurement platform. For applications seeking first-time price increases in Beijing’s procurement system, the Bureau will adopt differentiated approaches, including direct approval, supplementary listing, or conditional approval based on specific circumstances when processing direct listings or price adjustments.
Requirements for Pharmaceutical Companies
Pharmaceutical companies, as primary responsible parties for drug pricing, must base price adjustments on actual costs and supply-demand changes. They are urged to exercise prudence in price modifications, proactively fulfill information disclosure and self-correction obligations during listing applications and price increase requests, and ensure quoted prices reflect market realities and comply with regulations.
Enhancing Risk Prevention
The Bureau will enhance risk prevention for first-time price increase varieties by requiring disclosure for drugs with price hikes under the “shortage drug” designation. It will conduct price risk assessments, strengthen self-inspection and self-correction mechanisms for listed companies, and support enterprises in optimizing pricing strategies to mitigate risks.-Fineline Info & Tech