Archive · 7 Dec 2025
China's First Private Insurance List Includes Eli Lilly, Pfizer Drugs
China has made a list of 19 special medicines that are too expensive for the government to pay for but can be covered by private insurance.
This list includes drugs from big companies like Eli Lilly, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson, as well as some Chinese companies.
These medicines help treat serious diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s, and rare genetic disorders.
The government negotiated lower prices for these drugs, which will be offered to private insurance companies.
This new list is expected to help more people get access to these expensive treatments and could make the drug companies more money.
The list will start being used on January 1, 2026, and is expected to grow to include more drugs in the future.
19 innovative drugs, including those from Eli Lilly, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson, were added to China’s first private insurance catalog.
The drugs cover a range of conditions including cancer, Alzheimer’s, and rare genetic disorders.
Drugmakers negotiated discounted prices ranging from 15% to 50% for inclusion in the catalog.
The new catalog aims to ease the burden on state medical insurance and allow drugmakers to sell at higher prices.
The list is expected to grow to 300 drugs by 2027, expanding the role of commercial insurance in funding innovative drugs.
- Who
- Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and local Chinese drugmakers
- What
- Inclusion of 19 innovative drugs in China’s first private insurance catalog
- When
- Effective January 1, 2026
- Where
- China
- Why
- To open a new market channel for costly, cutting-edge treatments and ease the burden on state medical insurance
- Number of drugs listed
- 19
- Conditions covered
- Cancer, Alzheimer’s, rare genetic disorders
- Discount range
- 15% to 50%
- Effective date
- January 1, 2026
- Total drugs considered
- 121
- Expected catalog size by 2027
- 300 drugs