First Provincial Alliance for Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Materials Joins Sanming Procurement Alliance to Advance High-Quality, Cross-Regional TCM Joint Procurement

To implement the spirit of the “Implementation Opinions on Deepening the Promotion of Sanming City’s Experience and Furthering Healthcare System Reform” (Guo Yi Gai Fa [2021] No. 2) issued by the State Council’s Leading Group for Healthcare Reform, which encourages localities to join the “Sanming Procurement Alliance,” the Fourth Joint Conference of the Sanming Procurement Alliance (National) was successfully held in Xiamen, Fujian Province, on December 12. Themed “Advancing Normalized Cross-Regional Joint Procurement of Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices,” the conference brought together representatives from more than 40 cities across 22 provinces, municipalities directly under the Central Government, and autonomous regions nationwide. Participants discussed the expansion and upgrading of the Sanming Procurement Alliance (National), joined hands to promote normalized cross-regional joint procurement of pharmaceuticals and medical devices, and leveraged digitalization to further ensure the effective implementation of healthcare reform outcomes across various regions.

At the meeting, the nation’s first inter-provincial procurement alliance for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) materials joined the Sanming Procurement Alliance (China). The inter-provincial TCM materials procurement alliance, led by Shandong Province, became the TCM materials alliance procurement base of the Sanming Procurement Alliance (China). Both parties will jointly explore innovative models for online trading and alliance-based procurement of TCM decoction pieces and other TCM materials, aiming to ensure quality, upgrade standards, and stabilize prices in the alliance-based procurement of TCM materials.

Signing Ceremony for the Inter-provincial Traditional Chinese Medicine (Herb) Procurement Alliance to Join the Sanming Procurement Alliance (China)

The Sanming Procurement Alliance (National) is a significant achievement of the Sanming healthcare reform. As the only national, cross-regional alliance for the procurement of pharmaceuticals and medical consumables recognized and encouraged by the state, it has become an important complementary force to national and provincial centralized procurement. The Inter-provincial Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Materials Procurement Alliance was established in July 2020, jointly initiated by the Shandong Provincial Healthcare Security Administration and the healthcare security administrations of 11 other provinces (autonomous regions, and municipalities). The founding members include Shandong, Tianjin, Inner Mongolia, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Fujian, Yunnan, Tibet, Gansu, Qinghai, and Ningxia, covering 12 provinces (autonomous regions, and municipalities). The alliance encompasses six of the ten major authentic TCM material production areas in China, including those for Guan medicine, Bei medicine, Jiangnan medicine, Yun-Gui medicine, Tibetan medicine, and Xi medicine. The planting area of TCM materials within these regions accounts for approximately 45% of the total national planting area.

Qiu Bingyu, Deputy Director of the Shandong Provincial Healthcare Security Administration, stated that quality control is the key to joint procurement of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) materials. After more than a year of exploration, the Inter-provincial Alliance for TCM Procurement has established a TCM quality standard system, routine quality sampling and inspection, authentication of geo-authentic TCM materials, and a whole-process traceability system for TCM. These measures have formed unified quality standards and leveraged market mechanisms to achieve high quality at reasonable prices. This approach has resolved long-standing challenges in establishing mutually recognized uniform standards for TCM quality, which were previously hindered by various factors such as product variety, origin, seasonality, and processing methods. By addressing the most significant pain point in cross-regional joint procurement of TCM materials, the alliance has achieved its goals of “ensuring quality, upgrading standards, and stabilizing prices.”

At the joint conference, representatives from provincial and municipal-level healthcare security administrations engaged in extensive discussions on the next steps for the alliance’s joint procurement of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) materials. The representatives stated that joint procurement of TCM materials has become a key area for breakthrough efforts, with various regions implementing deployments and explorations to varying degrees. The exploration by the Inter-Provincial Alliance for TCM Material Procurement has provided valuable experience. Representatives from founding members of the alliance, such as Yunnan and Qinghai provinces, noted that the alliance’s initiatives have addressed challenges related to quality standard control in the joint procurement of TCM materials and facilitated the broader market access of regionally authentic TCM materials.

Zhao Kun, Visiting Professor at the Vanke School of Public Health and Medicine, Tsinghua University, believes that the distinctiveness of centralized procurement for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) decoction pieces and other TCM materials lies in the fact that it is not solely aimed at price reduction. She noted that Chinese TCM products still face challenges such as low market share abroad. It is hoped that this alliance-based, market-oriented trading platform will facilitate further upgrading, transformation, and development of China’s TCM industry, promoting standardization, brand building, and internationalization, thereby continuously creating new advantages in the economic and trade development of TCM.

At the meeting, Sanming Procurement Alliance (China), operated by WeDoctor Group’s holding company Sanming Sanyilian Digital Technology Co., Ltd., and Xiamen Haixi Pharmaceutical Trading Center Co., Ltd., signed a tripartite agreement with the Shandong Internet Traditional Chinese Medicine (Herbal Materials) Trading Center to accelerate the development of information interoperability among their digital platforms.

Sanming’s “Three Medicals” Alliance, Xiamen Haixi Pharmaceutical Trading Center, and Shandong Internet Traditional Chinese Medicine (Herbal Materials) Trading Center Sign Agreement

With the accession of the Inter-provincial Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Materials Procurement Alliance, the Sanming Procurement Alliance (China) has further expanded its scope and will play a greater role in joint procurement within the TCM materials sector. Both parties will jointly establish the Shandong Internet TCM Materials Trading Center, leveraging this platform to conduct online trading and alliance-based procurement of TCM decoction pieces and formula granules, with the aim of rapidly ensuring that the public has access to safe, high-quality, and affordably priced medicines.