Teva China Head Huang Diren: Seizing CIIE Opportunities to Co-Build a Healthier Future

Xinhua News Agency, Shanghai, October 30 (Reporter Gong Xiaojia) -- From November 5 to 10, the 6th China International Import Expo will be held in Shanghai. As a globally leading pharmaceutical enterprise, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. will once again appear at the CIIE with several star products, comprehensively showcasing its rich and diverse product portfolio. This also expresses Teva’s firm confidence in deepening its presence in the Chinese market and connecting the Chinese people with a healthier future.

Teva Greater China General Manager Huang Diren said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency that, with the improvement of living standards and the continuous enhancement of health awareness, Chinese people have a deeper understanding of health, and their needs are becoming increasingly diverse. In the rapidly evolving development environment in China, Teva actively responds to Chinese healthcare policies, gains deep insights into the unmet health needs of the Chinese people, and builds a more diversified portfolio of high-quality products to help achieve the goals of "Healthy China 2030."

Teva Greater China General Manager Huang Diran

  CIIE Provides an Excellent Platform for Display and Exchange for Multinational Enterprises

It is reported that Teva Pharmaceutical Industries has a history of more than 120 years since its establishment. It boasts a comprehensive and diverse product portfolio, covering innovative drugs, generic drugs, active pharmaceutical ingredients, and over-the-counter medicines. Its key focus areas include the central nervous system, respiratory diseases, immunology, and oncology, with a total of up to 3,600 products.

"Last year, Teva participated in the CIIE for the first time and deeply felt that the CIIE is an excellent window. The CIIE provides a superb platform for multinational companies like us, building a communication bridge between enterprises and the government, as well as between enterprises themselves. Teva’s debut last year received very positive feedback," said Huang Diren.

It is reported that during last year's CIIE, Teva showcased the debut of three star products—Copaxone, Austedo, and Bendeka—and signed strategic cooperation agreements with Sinopharm and Shanghai Pharmaceutical Group respectively. By integrating the strengths of both parties, they aim to improve Chinese patients' access to high-quality drugs. Huang Diren stated that, thanks to the strong spillover effect of the CIIE, Austedo successfully renewed its inclusion in the National Reimbursement Drug List in January this year, and Copaxone was granted accelerated approval in June this year. These "CIIE achievements" have genuinely benefited more patients in China.

At this year's CIIE, Teva will showcase under the renewed theme of "Linking Parties, Innovating for Life, Benefiting China," reflecting its confidence and vision in deepening its presence in the Chinese market. It presents star products covering multiple fields at the Medical Devices and Healthcare Exhibition Area, including the innovative migraine drug Fremanezumab (Ajovy) making its "China debut," and Sudocrem, the first consumer product launched in China.

According to reports, thanks to the "Hong Kong-Macao Medicine and Device Access Policy," Ajovy has been authorized by the Guangdong Provincial Drug Administration to be introduced in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, enriching the options for preventive migraine treatment in the region. In July, the first patient received treatment at the Guangzhou branch of United Family Hospital.

"Teva has identified China as one of its key growth markets, demonstrating its confidence in the potential and development of the Chinese market. The fruitful results from last year's CIIE have further strengthened our confidence and determination to continue participating. With 50 days to go before the sixth CIIE, Teva has successfully renewed its contract for the seventh CIIE, securing its spot for next year in advance. We will also seize the opportunities presented by the CIIE and work together with everyone to build a healthy future," said Di Ren Huang.

  Innovative drugs are one of Teva's core pillars for the future.

It was reported that in May this year, Teva released its global development strategy "Pivot to Growth," which identified four growth pillars, including unleashing the potential of growth engines, strengthening innovation capabilities, consolidating leading positions, and focusing on core businesses.

"Innovative drugs are one of Teva's core pillars for the future and a strong growth engine," said Di-Ren Huang. Many people think Teva is a generic drug company, but this is actually a misunderstanding. We have a very long history in the field of innovative drugs. For example, in Parkinson's disease and relapsing multiple sclerosis, we have developed many leading and groundbreaking treatment solutions, providing patients with therapeutic options. In addition, Teva has an integrated 'One Teva' drug R&D model, which allows us to fully combine our long-standing leading advantages in active pharmaceutical ingredients and generic drugs with our knowledge in innovative drug development, unleashing internal synergies, thereby improving R&D efficiency and providing patients with high-quality innovative treatment solutions.

Huang Diren emphasized that, based on the company's new development strategy, Teva will expand its innovative drug pipeline, focusing on psychiatry, neurology, respiratory, immunology, and oncology to address more unmet clinical needs of patients and create top-tier and leading innovative drugs in the industry.

How to Promote the Implementation of Innovative Products? Huang Diren stated that first, we will optimize resources. In terms of innovative drug development, China is one of the four key regions globally that Teva places great importance on, with the aim of launching innovative drugs in China simultaneously with the United States, Europe, and Japan. Secondly, we will explore innovative cooperation models to enhance the accessibility of Teva's high-quality products among patients.

  In Sync with the Chinese Market, Supporting the Construction of "Healthy China"

In 2018, Teva officially entered China, continuously implementing the "In China, For China" strategy, and fully opening up cooperation in China.

"For this strategy, we have two aspects of understanding: First, we will refer to the unmet needs of Chinese patients and quickly introduce medicines. Second, we will actively explore cooperation opportunities with all parties in the medical ecosystem, and look forward to working together with all parties in the medical ecosystem to promote high-level development in the Chinese market," said Di Ren Huang. The Chinese pharmaceutical market has enormous potential, and Teva firmly believes in the limitless opportunities within the Chinese market, and is confident in China's high-quality development.

In recent years, China has elevated the "Healthy China" initiative to a national strategy and released the "Healthy China 2030" Planning Outline. Huang Diren stated that Teva has been in sync with China’s medical market and actively responded to China’s healthcare policies. To support the implementation of the "Healthy China" strategy, Teva has taken various measures to significantly improve the accessibility and affordability of its medical products in China. Currently, several of Teva's products have undergone negotiations for inclusion in the National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL) or have been procured through the National Centralized Volume-based Procurement program. In 2020, Austedo (Tetrabenazine), as the first deuterated drug in China, was officially approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) after priority review and approval for the treatment of chorea associated with Huntington’s disease and tardive dyskinesia in adults. Later that same year, it successfully entered the NRDL following national reimbursement negotiations, enhancing patient affordability. In 2021, Bendeka was included in the fifth round of the National Centralized Volume-based Procurement at the lowest price among originator drugs. In November of the same year, it was officially incorporated into the NRDL. Bendeka is indicated for patients with indolent B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma who experience disease progression during or after treatment with rituximab or rituximab-containing regimens.

In addition, to meet the urgent needs of female patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis during pregnancy and lactation, Teva has introduced the classic drug Copaxone into the Chinese market. In June this year, Copaxone was officially approved for the treatment of adult patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis and is recommended as a first-line disease-modifying therapy for use in pregnant and breastfeeding women. Teva is currently actively preparing for negotiations regarding medical insurance inclusion.

Huang Diren stated that, to meet the growing healthcare needs of Chinese patients, Teva will leverage its diverse product portfolio to continuously introduce high-quality products across multiple fields, benefiting Chinese patients. In terms of innovative drugs, Teva will focus on psychiatry, neurology, respiratory, immunology, and oncology to advance the implementation of its innovative pipeline, providing Chinese patients with more high-quality innovative products. Meanwhile, Teva will continue to introduce its global product resources, including over-the-counter medicines and generics, to meet the increasingly diverse health needs of the Chinese population.