Digital Medical Consortiums Reshape Healthcare Industry Landscape Amid Policy Tailwinds from Dual-Circular Issuance on Integrated Healthcare System
Digital Healthcare Sees Another Policy Boost! The General Office of the CPC Central Committee and the General Office of the State Council recently issued the “Opinions on Further Improving the Medical and Health Service System” (hereinafter referred to as the “Opinions”), which emphasize leveraging the supporting role of information technology and developing “Internet + Medical Health.”
Fueled by optimism, sectors such as internet healthcare have rapidly strengthened, sparking widespread market discussion.
Industry insiders stated that the “Opinions” continue the policy sector’s longstanding supportive stance toward the digital healthcare industry and outline more practical implementation measures. Building on this, the document explicitly states that “privately operated medical institutions may take the lead in forming Medical Consortia,” which constitutes a substantive benefit for emerging business models such as digital medical consortia.
Analysis suggests that, as the fundamental form of an integrated healthcare service system, the next phase of medical consortium development will necessarily rely heavily on the application of digital technologies. Pioneers such as WeDoctor are actively exploring new models like digital health communities and chronic disease medical consortia through their digital hospitals. These “digital medical consortia,” led by digitized, innovative private healthcare institutions, will become the new direction for the industry.
In recent years, the Chinese government has been promoting the application of next-generation information technologies, such as "Internet Plus," big data, and artificial intelligence, in the healthcare sector, thereby accelerating the development of digital health.
According to data from the China Commercial Industry Research Institute, the market size of China's internet healthcare industry grew from RMB 65 billion in 2016 to RMB 196.1 billion in 2020, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31.79%. As the advantages of internet healthcare, such as convenience and low cost, become increasingly apparent, the market size is projected to expand to RMB 577.8 billion by 2025.
The “Opinions” emphasize the supportive role of information technology, proposing to develop “Internet + Healthcare,” build an industrial internet platform oriented toward the healthcare sector, accelerate the application of the internet, blockchain, the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and big data in the healthcare field, and strengthen the construction of systems for the sharing, exchange, and security of health and medical big data, among other measures.
The market responded positively. On the first trading day following the policy announcement (March 24), sectors related to healthcare IT and internet healthcare in both the Hong Kong and A-share markets surged collectively, significantly outperforming the broader market indices. Among them, Dingdang Health rose by 14.45%, Ping An Good Doctor by 6.16%, Ali Health by 3.57%, and JD Health by 2.62%, while the Hang Seng Index recorded a decline of 0.67% on the same day.
In response, industry insiders noted that the “Opinions” are consistent with the state’s long-standing policies supporting the development of digital healthcare. Requirements such as “actively leveraging internet and artificial intelligence technologies to continuously optimize service processes” do not exceed the scope of previous policy arrangements; however, this document provides a more systematic and actionable work deployment.
The deeper reason for the market’s positive response lies in the fact that, under the overall objectives and work arrangements outlined in the “Opinions,” the application of digital healthcare will be promoted across a broader range of scenarios, thereby unlocking significant industrial opportunities with substantial growth potential.
In response to reporters’ questions, a senior official of the National Health Commission stated that the Guidelines set forth phased objectives for further improving the healthcare service system, aiming to establish a high-quality, efficient, and integrated healthcare delivery system by 2035. The Guidelines encourage private healthcare providers to play a vital role as a dynamic force, explicitly stipulating that privately run medical institutions may take the lead in forming or participate in medical consortia.
This means that the innovative power of digital healthcare is becoming a new form of productive force, positioning it to play an in-depth role in the reshaping and upgrading of the healthcare service system. In particular, as the development of medical consortia has become a primary driver of China’s healthcare sector, it harbors significant industrial opportunities. Leveraging digital technologies to facilitate the establishment of medical consortia will emerge as a major new growth frontier for the industry.
Xiao Hongliang, Senior Research Manager at IDC China, analyzed that “Internet + Healthcare” can optimize the allocation of medical resources, advance the modernization of healthcare capabilities, promote tiered diagnosis and treatment, and drive systemic integration.
In fact, in pursuit of the goal to build a high-quality, efficient, and integrated healthcare service system, many regions across China are vigorously promoting the active role of “Internet + Healthcare” in the reform of tiered diagnosis and treatment, with leading industry platforms such as WeDoctor gradually becoming deeply involved.
For example, under the guidance of the Tianjin Municipal Health Commission and the Tianjin Medical Security Bureau, Tianjin WeDoctor Internet Hospital served as the lead entity to jointly establish a tightly integrated digital medical consortium—the Tianjin Primary Care Digital Health Community—in collaboration with 266 primary healthcare institutions across the city. This initiative provides residents with integrated online and offline medical and health services, while leveraging chronic disease management as an entry point to innovatively explore and construct a value-based healthcare service system featuring “pay-for-performance.”
In Shandong, WeDoctor has leveraged its digital hospital platform to implement a digital chronic disease medical consortium, extensively integrating resources from major healthcare institutions and enabling health insurance payment capabilities. It has established over 40 chronic disease service centers in cities such as Jinan, Tai’an, and Weifang, providing patients with an integrated online-to-offline “three-specialist co-management” service, thereby pioneering a new model for digital chronic disease management.
These industry practices have not only generated substantial social benefits but also demonstrated considerable market potential. Reports indicate that within just a few months, over 110,000 patients in Tianjin were enrolled in the Digital Health Community and placed under the health stewardship responsibility system for special outpatient diabetes care. Meanwhile, Shandong’s Chronic Disease Medical Consortium has served more than 4.5 million individuals with chronic diseases, offering a glimpse into the scale of this impact.
In fact, since the establishment of Wuzhen Internet Hospital, China’s first internet hospital, in 2015, digital technology and medical services have accelerated their integration. However, the industry’s overall niche within the healthcare value chain remains primarily focused on peripheral medical services such as e-commerce, lightweight consultations, and health advisory.
In recent years, through the joint efforts of the industry, as digitalization deepens the “hyperlinks” among the supply side, demand side, and payers, tackling integrated medical service scenarios has become a key direction, which is also an inevitable step to unlock the upward potential of digital health value.
However, achieving this is no easy feat.
Observations indicate that leading the development of a “Digital Medical Consortium” places exceptionally high demands on the capabilities of the platform provider. For instance, in terms of organizational structure, it is necessary to shift from the traditional model that prioritizes online services while neglecting offline ones, and instead establish an integrated “Internet Hospital + Physical Hospital” framework that combines digital platforms with medical service capabilities. Regarding services, the key lies in delivering cost-effective digital healthcare and health maintenance services that cover the entire patient lifecycle. In terms of payment mechanisms, it is essential to achieve integration across multiple payers, including basic medical insurance and commercial insurance; among these, securing scaled procurement from the most critical payer—basic medical insurance—is paramount. Furthermore, integration of the upstream and downstream supply chain is also crucial, as it forms the foundation for reducing costs and enhancing efficiency.
However, as industry pioneers such as WeDoctor deepen the integration of medical care, pharmaceuticals, insurance, and digital capabilities to establish multi-functional digital hospitals, the transition of digital medical consortia from local pilots to a nationwide industrial opportunity is accelerating. This shift is driving an overall uplift of digital healthcare across the industry value chain and expanding market channels, which may well reshape the industrial form and landscape of digital healthcare.