Why Internet + Vaccination Stands Out as the Most Promising Segment for Leapfrog Growth in Digital Healthcare

On September 14, 2018, the National Health Commission of China issued the “Administrative Measures for Internet-Based Diagnosis and Treatment (Trial),” the “Administrative Measures for Internet Hospitals (Trial),” and the “Standard Specifications for Remote Medical Services (Trial).” These three landmark documents have charted the course for the rapid development of “Internet + Healthcare” in China.

Nearly a month has passed. For existing internet healthcare companies, how to seize opportunities, adjust and refine their operations, and deliver more valuable comprehensive, holistic, and continuous services to consumers has become a critical issue. VCBeat has also been closely observing which specific medical sector will be most profoundly and extensively impacted by the internet.

Based on the timing of the emerging trend and the influx of capital, 2011 is recognized as the “Year One of Internet Healthcare,” with the first batch of internet healthcare companies established around this period. As a supplement to traditional healthcare, internet healthcare is committed to delivering order-of-magnitude improvements in efficiency and user experience, along with significant cost reductions.

From its nascent stage, when it was not widely accepted by the public, to its period of unbridled growth between 2013 and 2015, internet healthcare has seen a cohort of star enterprises emerge across more than ten sectors, including health and wellness, medical consultation and diagnosis, specialized services, healthcare informatization, and biotechnology, with the leading players rapidly securing key traffic gateways.

Following the controversies surrounding key issues in commercial monetization, the development of internet healthcare gradually returned to rationality in 2017. These prominent companies no longer pursued business coverage unilaterally but instead began to place greater emphasis on business growth and conversion rates. The essence of internet healthcare is “connecting all aspects of healthcare.” As a policy-driven industry, internet healthcare has been entrusted with high expectations for resolving the challenges inherent in China’s healthcare system.

In 2018, the entire industry finally capitalized on favorable policy tailwinds. On April 28, 2018, the General Office of the State Council officially released the “Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Development of ‘Internet + Healthcare’” (hereinafter referred to as the “Opinions”), providing a significant boost to the internet healthcare sector from a policy perspective. On September 14, the highly anticipated new regulations for internet healthcare were finally finalized.

VCBeat has observed that at the current stage of internet healthcare development, even highly vertical industries characterized by high barriers to entry, complex regulation, and distinct regional features—such as vaccine-focused apps—have begun to form a landscape dominated by leading platforms. So, in the field of immunization management, how can internet healthcare penetrate core medical scenarios and leverage its superior connectivity capabilities to build a more mature service system in terms of products, technology, and services? VCBeat (WeChat: vcbeat) provides an analysis. In this article, you will see:

1. Three Phases of China's Immunization Program;

2. Difficulties and Challenges in the Informatization of Vaccination Services;

3. Reasons Why the Vaccination Industry Will Undergo the Most Thorough Internet-Based Transformation.

In the field of public health, vaccination is the most cost-effective and efficient means of disease control. Vaccination helps establish effective immune barriers. In recent years, global patterns of disease incidence have undergone fundamental changes, with the incidence rates of certain infectious diseases approaching historical lows, and some even achieving elimination targets.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of China’s National Immunization Program. Based on the achievements attained, the development of the program can be divided into three main phases. The first phase was the pre-vaccine era; the second phase was the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI), spanning from 1978 to 2000; and the third phase is the implementation of the National Immunization Program, from 2000 to the present.

The core strategies and components of immunization programs are: (1) vaccine administration, (2) surveillance activities, and (3) program management. The ultimate goal of vaccination is to continuously expand the portfolio of high-quality vaccines, increase vaccine coverage across broader populations, and thereby establish herd immunity. Information technology infrastructure facilitates the implementation of these strategies.

First, in the vaccination process, the development of the Immunization Program Management Platform, Client Information Management System, and Digital Outpatient Clinic Management System has helped improve the operational and managerial efficiency of vaccine administration. Second, surveillance is closely integrated with information technology management, primarily involving three major monitoring systems: vaccination coverage surveillance, adverse event following immunization (AEFI) surveillance, and surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases. These systems enable the assessment of vaccinated populations and vaccine effectiveness.

Finally, whether for immunization or surveillance, informatized management is indispensable. In terms of management, in addition to complying with national regulations, the primary objective is to enhance efficiency by leveraging information technology to meet the requirements of professional management.

However, the development of information systems for immunization currently faces numerous difficulties and challenges, such as data silos between different systems and the inability of immunization planning systems to effectively facilitate data sharing among institutions. There is also an urgent need at the policy level to establish open standards.

While remarkable achievements have been made in immunization programs, a gap remains between the quality of vaccination services and public expectations. As public awareness of proactive health management grows, demands for public administration and services are rising. It has become an inevitable trend to leverage internet technologies and products, unlock the value of big data in public health, and further enhance industry management and service standards.

“Internet + Vaccination” will bring significant changes and development opportunities to this industry. By leveraging internet technologies, particularly mobile internet, it can break down information asymmetry and establish real-time connectivity among parents, healthcare providers, and disease control agencies. This approach makes vaccination more proactive and efficient, while also helping to streamline vaccination processes and optimize the overall experience.

In 2014, a wave of mobile applications emerged in the field of vaccination. Beyond providing vaccine-related health education and consultation services, these platforms optimized preventive healthcare management and service models by offering parents comprehensive features across the entire vaccination process, including electronic immunization record inquiries, vaccination reminders, inventory checks, appointment scheduling, and payment processing.

According to statistics, in 2017, there were 19 enterprises in China developing apps for vaccination services. The companies with more than 100,000 users included Shenzhen Sandairen Technology Co., Ltd., Shensu Company, Nanjing Zhongweixin Company, Hebei Shichuang Company, and Zhuhai ZhiTe Company. These companies aimed to address common pain points in traditional vaccination processes, such as the inconvenience of consulting doctors, long waiting times and poor user experience, and the difficulty for doctors to efficiently notify parents or identify missed vaccinations.

It is evident that the Internet has contributed to improving vaccination services and management, providing convenience for service recipients, and reducing the workload of vaccination institutions and personnel.

It is undeniable that restructuring the immunization prevention business processes to establish a real-time interactive service model for the public remains a long and arduous journey. The most significant challenge currently lies in data integration; while a vast amount of vaccination-related data is centralized within disease control and management authorities, certain regions remain hesitant about data interfacing.

The inability to achieve real-time data integration hinders the practical implementation and promotion of "vaccination + Internet" informatization services, thereby impeding information interoperability. If regulatory authorities could promptly establish standards, clearly define the boundaries for data usage, and implement a whitelist-like system, it might alleviate the aforementioned challenges to some extent.

The optimization of vaccine distribution and traceability management via the Internet also faces certain challenges. The full-process traceability of vaccine distribution is divided into several segments: from manufacturers to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCs); from CDCs to vaccination sites; from vaccination sites to individuals; and the monitoring and traceability of Adverse Events Following Immunization (AEFI) post-vaccination.

In particular, information flow in the cold chain transportation and storage segments remains highly fragmented. This is primarily because process documentation relies on manual, paper-based records, which hinder data retention, circulation, and retrieval. Addressing this requires digitizing data sources, enabling fully automated networked connectivity of data-generating devices, and implementing intelligent data processing.

Strictly speaking, the informatization systems for immunization programs at Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCs) have not maximized their utility. They fail to establish genuine connections with end-users, functioning more as internal reporting and data statistics management systems rather than enabling true user interaction. Consequently, many systems—covering vaccination information management, vaccine management, cold chain management, and appointment scheduling—have evolved into regionalized informatization initiatives.

Meanwhile, the development of “Internet + Vaccination” continues to face challenges such as poor underlying data quality and insufficient data accuracy and timeliness, which prevent related services from delivering an optimal user experience. In addition, public awareness of preventive health remains inadequate, and the misallocation of medical resources has yet to be fully resolved. How to leverage vaccination as a breakthrough point to connect grassroots healthcare institutions with families, thereby improving the efficiency of grassroots health management services, is a question worthy of long-term exploration in the future.

Nevertheless, the value that accurate and timely data connectivity brings to users and the industry is undeniable. On July 12 this year, the National Health Commission and the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine jointly issued the “Notice on Deepening the Implementation of ‘Internet + Healthcare’ Convenience and Benefit Activities,” requiring the entire healthcare sector to carry out such activities, with a focus on leveraging “Internet+” solutions to address the difficulties patients face in accessing medical care.

The “Notice” outlines the next phase of development for the “Internet+ Vaccination” sector, designating children covered under the National Immunization Program as the primary service population. It calls for the integration of existing vaccination information platforms, the implementation of public education campaigns on vaccination knowledge, and encourages regions with adequate resources to offer services such as online vaccination appointment scheduling and vaccination reminders.

With policy support, after years of development, internet healthcare is gradually returning to its essence: leveraging internet technologies to achieve comprehensive digitalization, mobilization, and intelligence of medical services, thereby improving efficiency and truly fulfilling the role of “connecting everything in healthcare.” This is the source of disruptive innovation.

Within the broader healthcare sector, areas susceptible to internet influence must possess the following characteristics: First, the products and services offered exhibit a relatively high degree of standardization. Second, the integration of internet technology reduces transaction costs and enhances convenience. Third, it lowers regulatory compliance costs from the government’s perspective. Fourth, the coordination costs associated with delivering products and services are relatively low. Fifth, the level of capital attention directed toward internet penetration in a given field partly determines the breadth of its market boundaries.

Vaccination embodies all the aforementioned characteristics. The depth and breadth of the Internet’s impact on the vaccination industry are substantial, and digital transformation in this sector may be the most thorough. With proper integration, it has the potential to connect the entire upstream and downstream value chain, thereby empowering the industry as a whole. Supported and encouraged by policy, the “Internet + Vaccination” sector is poised to achieve leapfrog development more rapidly and comprehensively than other areas.

In recent years, vaccine-related apps have gradually evolved to target the entire vaccination industry value chain, creating an integrated online-to-offline service ecosystem that connects parents, physicians, centers for disease control and prevention (CDCs), and vaccine manufacturers. This approach breaks down information asymmetry and enhances industry efficiency.

It is believed that competition in this field will intensify in the future. As services deepen and data accumulates, new pain points and emerging demands continue to arise. The ability to refine products based on these needs, coupled with the effective integration of three key elements—data, technology, and services—will be critical to determining industry leadership.