Pressure on pharmaceuticals companies operating in China intensified yesterday as authorities broadened their probe into drug pricing and corruption.
The government of Shanghai – whose public hospitals buy a large proportion of medicines in China – told hospitals to look for corruption in the purchasing and prescribing of drugs, as well as in clinical trials conducted with hospital participation.
In an apparently separate move, the central government’s State Administration for Industry and Commerce announced that it would look for “bribery, fraud and anti-competitive practices” in a range of industries that touch the lives of consumers, from drugs and medical services to school admissions.