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China will lower prices on 182 modern, or Western-style, medicines in its latest effort to provide more affordable drugs, the country's economic planning body announced on Tuesday.
The new price caps involved more than 1,200 specific products, covering drugs for treating digestive and respiratory ailments, pain-killers, and anesthetic and neural medicines, said a National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) statement.
The price cuts, averaging 19 percent, would save consumers a total of about five billion yuan (649 million U.S. dollars) and would take effect on May 15, the NDRC said.
Some medicines would see price cuts of up to 62 percent.
The statement also announced that prices of 18 drugs that are in short supply would be raised "moderately" in order to encourage production and supply.
On March 7, NDRC Minister Ma Kai said many medicines were still over-priced despite several price reductions and the medical system needed systematic reforms to ensure medicines were more affordable.
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