On January 10th, the executive meeting of the State Council pointed out that in recent years, the reform of centralized quantity based procurement of drugs and high-value medical consumables has been continuously promoted, resulting in a cumulative savings of 260 billion yuan in medical insurance and patient expenses as of the end of last year. In the future, China will further reduce the medical burden on patients, gradually expand the coverage of high-value medical consumables procurement, and carry out centralized procurement of dental implants and other items of public concern at the national and provincial levels. This is also the first time at the national level to propose centralized procurement of dental implants, directly addressing the pain point of "expensive dental implants".
Why is planting a tooth so expensive?
Toothed pain is not a disease, it can be excruciating. Once teeth become loose or missing, the pain is unbearable, and people can only watch delicious food helplessly. It is too hard to chew, too sticky to eat, and sour or cold food should also be considered carefully, which greatly affects their diet and physical health.
Last year, I had a severe toothache and had to wait at least 10 days to register for dental treatment at a public hospital. So I went to a private dental clinic. The doctor suggested planting a tooth after extraction, and there were domestic, Korean, and European and American brands to choose from. High quality European and American products could be used for decades. I thought it would be done in one step, but ended up spending nearly 20000 yuan on one tooth. Medical insurance cannot reimburse it, and when I paid the bill, my heart was dripping with blood. It was too expensive! "Said Mr. Feng, a resident of Beijing." Fortunately, the entire implantation process was relatively smooth, and it took three months to complete the implantation. There were no complications in the past year, which is also worth it
Dentistry is one of the busiest consultation rooms in hospitals, and from children to the elderly, there is always a constant flow of people in front of the clinic. The reporter visited several public hospitals and private dental clinics in Chaoyang District, Beijing and learned that the price of a dental implant is mostly between 8000 yuan and 20000 yuan, and the price difference between public hospitals and private hospitals is not significant.
Dental implantation is currently one of the more advanced methods for repairing tooth defects. According to the official website of West China School of Stomatology at Sichuan University, there are many benefits of dental implants, including stable fixation, high chewing efficiency, no wear on adjacent teeth, strong aesthetics, comfort and convenience, minimal trauma, and fast healing.
According to research by Guohai Securities, the purchase price of dental implants for dental hospitals is about 400-600 yuan for domestic brands, 500-800 yuan for Korean brands, and 1600-3000 yuan for European and American brands. The overall Chinese implant market is dominated by Korean and European American brands, with a market share of over 90%, almost monopolizing the market. After being put into the patient''s mouth, the price of an implant tooth can rise to 6000 yuan -20000 yuan, and there is almost 10 times of "gray profit space" in the middle, which becomes the key to people''s roast.
At present, there is not much problem with domestic brand dental implants meeting daily needs, but there is still a considerable gap compared to those produced in the United States and South Korea, "Mr. Zhu, who has worked in the dental industry for more than 6 years, told reporters." If conditions permit, many people are willing to choose better quality imported dental implant products, but for most people, the current price of dental implants is difficult to afford, and ''usable'' is the bottom line standard
According to the "Oral Health Status of Chinese Residents - Fourth Epidemiological Survey Report on Oral Health in China", based on a normal population of 30 teeth, the average number of teeth missing in the 35-44 age group is 0.4, the average number of teeth missing in the 55-64 age group is 3.73, and the average number of teeth missing in the 65-74 age group is 7.5. According to an analysis report by Guohai Securities, the number of dental implants in China is expected to reach 4 million in 2020, with a compound annual growth rate of 30% from 2016 to 2020. The total size of China''s dental implant market is about 29.7 billion yuan, of which the implant market size is 3.1 billion yuan and the product service size is 22.7 billion yuan.
Comparing the dental implant markets in Europe, America, Japan, and South Korea, it is not difficult to see that there is significant room for improvement in the penetration rate of dental implants in China. With the aging population and rapid growth in demand for dental implants, the market profit is also considerable.
Collecting high-quality domestic products with quantity and profit
Why is there such a high demand for reducing the price of dental implants?
In recent years, with the continuous improvement of policy supervision, the continuous enhancement of enterprise innovation capabilities, the rapid growth of industrial scale, and the gradual institutionalization and normalization of centralized procurement. By not squeezing out a lot of inflated prices for medical consumables, pharmaceuticals, and other products, centralized procurement can eliminate middlemen, significantly reduce the costs generated in the circulation process, and a large quantity is also beneficial for reducing costs. Centralized procurement promotes the high-quality development of domestic drugs, reshapes the industry landscape, and reduces pharmaceutical prices to benefit more patients.
Mr. Zhu told the reporter: "At present, the prices of the same brand of dental implants in the industry are uneven, and the price difference is large. Centralized procurement will make the price of dental implants have a recognized standard. However, from the perspective of economic interests, in recent years, capital has poured into the oral cavity market, while the rapid development of the oral cavity industry, there is also a large foam. The short and smooth way makes the essence of oral medicine weakened, which needs attention."
A dentist in Shenzhen explained in an interview with China City Daily that the high cost of dental implants is due to the fact that although domestic products are constantly developing, the vast majority of dental implant consumables rely on imports, leading to insufficient competition in the industry; On the other hand, compared to products, the value of medical service expenses is higher, including high added value of medical services such as labor compensation, equipment depreciation, advertising expenses, etc.
The premium impact of centralized procurement on oral healthcare service ports is not significant. Although the price of dental implants will decrease after centralized procurement, the magnitude is limited, and it is difficult to see a scenario where orthopedic and cardiology consumables are easily reduced by more than 70%, "said the aforementioned dentist.
It is worth noting that the marketization level of dentistry is high, and private dental institutions have an advantage in market share and the number of medical institutions. According to data from the National Health Commission, as of the end of 2019, there were approximately 885 specialized dental hospitals in China, of which 723 were private dental hospitals, accounting for 81.69%. The dental implant business is mostly completed by private medical institutions.
Among the medical community, dentists have a low dependence on hospitals, and there are many doctors who have switched from public hospitals to private dental clinics. Despite the proliferation of dental clinics, most of them can only provide basic treatment, and the resources of high-quality doctors are not abundant. This also leads to a more considerable "premium space" for dentistry compared to other medical categories. For the dental industry, the high cost of dental implants is not only due to expensive consumables, but also due to the scarcity of excellent dental implant dentists and the high cost of artificial technology. It is reported that in 2018, there were only 156 dentists per million people in China, and only 11% of dentists qualified for dental implants.
High prices are often directly proportional to the scarcity of talent and cutting-edge technology, but market pricing disorder and excessive marketing also reveal a glimpse of industry chaos.
Some dentists are concerned that the price reduction will release the demand for dental implants in China, leading to a situation of "supply shortage". A large number of "non essential" patients following the trend of dental implantation will squeeze the already scarce medical resources, making it difficult for patients with real demand to have dental implantation.
Industry insiders say that the centralized procurement of dental implants is a signal, and it may only be a matter of time before the dental industry faces rectification. The huge demand for dental implants released after the price reduction has become a new dividend, while also placing higher demands on the talent cultivation and technical improvement of dentists. The fundamental purpose of healthcare reform is to restore the essential price of medical services and promote a virtuous cycle in the industry, apart from consumables and drugs themselves.
Dental implant procurement will usher in a period of acceleration
On January 10th, the executive meeting of the State Council pointed out that in recent years, the reform of centralized quantity based procurement of drugs and high-value medical consumables has been continuously promoted, resulting in a cumulative savings of 260 billion yuan in medical insurance and patient expenses as of the end of last year. In the future, China will further reduce the medical burden on patients, gradually expand the coverage of high-value medical consumables procurement, and carry out centralized procurement of dental implants and other items of public concern at the national and provincial levels. This is also the first time at the national level to propose centralized procurement of dental implants, directly addressing the pain point of "expensive dental implants".
In fact, China has already started pilot projects in some regions, such as dental implant insurance payment and centralized procurement price reduction.
In August 2021, Ningbo City in Zhejiang Province held talks with five imported dental implant suppliers, hoping to leverage the power of medical insurance to bring dental implants back to a reasonable price range. In November of the same year, Sichuan Province issued the "Notice on Carrying out Information Collection of Some High Value Medical Consumables for Oral Diseases" under the "Eight Provinces and Two Districts" policy, which will carry out information declaration work for medical consumables such as dental implants, restoration abutments, and implant restoration accessories. Subsequently, Zhejiang, Ningxia, Shanxi and other regions have also carried out bulk procurement of dental implant consumables.
Jin Weijia, Secretary of the Party Group and Director of the Anhui Provincial Medical Security Bureau, stated that there is no unified industry standard and product code for medical consumables, making it difficult to compare quality and price among products, and unable to form deep industry competition. Relevant enterprises maintain their sales channels, and the problem of high prices for high-value consumables is like an unbreakable "ice". But overall, we adhere to putting the people at the center and insisting that there are no forbidden areas for reform. In the future, the "no restricted area" centralized procurement is expected to further reduce the burden of medical treatment on the people. But at the same time, it should also be recognized that the fundamental goal of medical reform is to squeeze the moisture content of drugs and consumables, promote the adjustment of the income structure of medical institutions, streamline the medical service price system, reform the salary system of medical personnel, and promote the linkage and multi-party benefits of the three hospitals.
Various signs indicate that the public''s attention and expectations for dental implant procurement will accelerate this year. Chen Jinfu, Deputy Director of the National Medical Security Administration, said, "Currently, dental implant procurement is a layout under the leadership of the state and a procurement method explored in dental implants. In the future, procurement will be more important in terms of rules. The characteristics of different bidding bids are very complex, and they need to meet the requirements of product quality and clinical needs, so that enterprises and patients can effectively share the fruits of reform