A medical worker inquires a man's health condition before his COVID-19 vaccination at the health management center in Panyu district of Guangzhou City, south China's Guangdong province, Jan 6, 2021. (PHOTO/XINHUA)
Guangdong province has approved more than 20 medicines and 12 types of medical devices from Hong Kong and Macao since the launch of the Hong Kong and Macao Medicine and Equipment Connect in August last year.
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The year-old program running in the nine cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area allows designated mainland hospitals to use Hong Kong-approved drugs and medical devices without prior certification from the National Medical Products Administration. It has so far benefited more than 500 patients.
The year-old program allows designated mainland hospitals to use Hong Kong-approved drugs and medical devices without prior certification from the National Medical Products Administration
Compared with a year ago, the application and approval process has been simplified, and the average waiting time for approval has been cut in half. Moreover, it now takes only one day for designated hospitals to apply for a medicine or piece of equipment that the Guangdong Provincial Drug Administration has already approved.
The drugs and medicines introduced into Guangdong province have brought hope to many patients with rare and complicated diseases, including tumors, poisoning, ophthalmology surgery, and some chronic diseases.
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So far, patients in five designated hospitals in Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Zhongshan and Zhuhai can access these medicine and equipment.
To guarantee medication safety, the provincial drug administration formulated a comprehensive supervision tracing system to ensure that the use of drugs and medical devices from Hong Kong and Macao can be traced, controllable and accountable in designated medical institutions.
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