Unique Policies
  • Hainan Pilot Medical Tourism Zone

Hainan Pilot Medical Tourism Zone


BOAO, Hainan - The island province of Hainan has published a plan to build China's first special zone for medical tourism.

The southern part of the zone will feature health care centers for the elderly, patients with chronic disease and those in poor health, while the northern part will focus on medical treatment and research.


Medical tourism, which combines travel with leisure and healthcare, is already popular in some Asian countries like Singapore and India, and it is likely to boom in China thanks to rising living standards.

The zone in Hainan will make use of traditional Chinese medicine, the local tropical climate and world-class medical institutions the island aims to introduce.

Overseas medical institutions will be allowed to set up business within the zone. Other preferential policies will include lower taxes for imported medical instruments and medicines, and frontier medical programs like stem cell research will be allowed.

Construction of the zone is likely to cost up to 100 billion yuan ($16 billion).

The tropical island province, with its sun, sea and sand, is striving to build itself into an internationally famed travel destination.
According to the provincial statistics bureau, visitors to the island exceeded 33 million in 2012, with travel revenues hitting 37.9 billion yuan.

  • Hainan Given Green Channel for Medical Tourism in Hainan

Hainan Given Green Light for Medical Tourism

The State Council decided to suspend the implementation of Article 11, Item 2 of the Regulations on Supervision and Management of Medical Devices in the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Advance Zone in Hainan to support the development of Hainan's international medical tourism industry.


According to the decision, if certain medical equipment not legally available in China is urgently needed in the early zone, the Hainan provincial government may authorize its importation, but such equipment must be used in designated hospitals.


The State Council urged the State Drug Administration, the Hainan provincial government and other relevant departments to develop specific regulations on the conditions and procedures for the approval of imported medical equipment.

  • Drug Import Management Changed in Hainan Medical Tourism Pilot Zone

Drug Import Management Changed in Hainan Medical Tourism Pilot Zone

The State Council released a circular on Dec 29 and announced a change to drug import management in Boao Lecheng, an international medical tourism pilot zone in Hainan province.

According to the circular, the State Council made a temporary adjustment of the practice of the 36th article of China's regulations for the implementation of the drug administration law, allowing Hainan provincial government to approve the import of a small amount of drugs (not including vaccines) that are badly needed for clinical use in the pilot zone.

According to the 36th article of the regulation, the application should be submitted to the drug regulatory department under the State Council. Such imported drugs should be used in the designated medical institutions for a specified purpose, the circular stated.

Hainan government is required to strictly review the application submitted by medical institutions, track the imported drugs and ensure the safety of the importing channel. Specific management methods will be made by Hainan government and approved by State Council departments on drug regulation and health.

  • New Policy Hastens Approval of Overseas Drugs and Equipment
New Policy Hastens Approval of Overseas Drugs and Equipment

Access to new overseas drugs and medical equipment brought to the Chinese mainland is expected to be accelerated with the release of a new policy.

Data collected on the clinical use of imported drugs and medical equipment in a pilot zone in South China's Hainan province can be used for their registration in China, according to an implementation plan to support the development of the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone released by four central government departments, including the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Health Commission.

The plan outlined major tasks of the pilot zone, located in Qionghai, Hainan, including developing top level medical service providers and research institutes and developing quality medical tourism services.
By 2025, the zone will boast world class medical technologies, equipment and drugs, according to the plan.

The plan was an update of a previous one released by the State Council in 2013, the year when it approved the establishment of the zone, which included a series of policy breakthroughs such as allowing medical institutions in the zone to import and use badly needed drugs and medical equipment from overseas that are not yet approved by the top drug authority in China.

Shen Xiaoming, governor of Hainan, said"Although the previous regulation allows such drugs and medical equipment to be used in the zone, companies still have to go through registration procedures, including clinical trials, for approval before these drugs and medical equipment can enter the domestic market outside the zone. With the new policy, data gathered on their use in the zone can be used for their registration in China. The measure can greatly reduce the time for innovative overseas drugs to enter the domestic market."

Due to delays in the availability of new overseas drugs and medical equipment, about 600,000 patients in China go overseas annually for treatment.

The policy will benefit many Chinese patients as they will have access to the latest drugs and most advanced medical equipment. It will encourage more overseas pharmaceutical companies to export their products to China, with reduced cost and time for approval procedures.

The province is working under the guidance of the National Medical Products Administration, the top drug regulator, to formulate related regulations and standards to carry out the plan.
  • Favorable policies in Hainan FTP to Boost Medical beauty Industries

Favorable Policies in Hainan FTP to Boost Medical Aesthetics

Leveraging the benefits of Hainan's free trade port policy, the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Advance Zone in Hainan will bring more international medical technology, products and equipment to China and develop medical beauty as a major growth driver for the advance zone. Since the State Council approved the establishment of Boao Lecheng in 2013, the zone has undergone a major transformation. To date, the Advance Zone has introduced more than 100 innovative drugs and medical devices from overseas.


The zone is the only area in China that enjoys nine preferential policies, including special permission to import medical technology, medical equipment and pharmaceuticals. These policies allow medical institutions in the zone to import and use much-needed drugs and equipment from overseas that have not yet been approved by China's top drug agency. Medical beauty is one of the special areas of Boao Lecheng and a key part of Hainan's development of health tourism. Next year, 20 medical institutions are expected to enter Boao Lecheng, including a number of specialized medical beauty institutions.


Allergan, a subsidiary of U.S. pharmaceutical company AbbVie, announced on July 2 that its medical aesthetic product Volux has begun collecting clinical data in Boao Lecheng. The product, which entered the Pilot Zone on Dec. 29th, is the first cosmetic surgery product approved in Lecheng.


"The reason we are bringing our medical aesthetic products to the Early Bird Zone is that we see a constant surge in demand. Every year, 600,000 Chinese people travel abroad for medical treatment, and 20 percent of them are seeking medical aesthetic services. We want Chinese residents to have access to international standard medical products without leaving the country."


The healthcare sector is a key industry for Hainan, and it is a priority industry for the construction of Hainan's free trade port. Specifically, medical aesthetics is of great importance due to the consumer nature of the port. Hospitals here include those affiliated with the Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, which will be involved in the collection of clinical data, and through patient follow-up, data collection and analysis, the safety and effectiveness of the products can be assessed. The hospital will continue to build a platform for the landing of global advanced products, technologies and devices, conduct clinical trials, promote international cooperation and expand the scope and number of advanced drugs and devices in China by virtue of its status, ecology and policies.