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'Ineffective' generic drugs fuel rare public anger in China

BBC
Summary
Nutrition label

79% Informative

China 's drug procurement system incentivises the use of cheap generic drugs over original brand-name pharmaceuticals.

Doctors say they believe the system has led to costs being cut at the expense of people's safety.

Officials say the issue is one of perception rather than reality.

The official response has done little to allay public fears over reputation of drugs in public hospitals.

Controversy comes as China 's healthcare system is already under mounting pressure.

China 's total health expenditure has increased nearly 20-fold over the last 20 years .

Counterfeit drugs have seeped into both generic and brand-name drugs markets across the world and are notoriously difficult to detect.

The National Healthcare Security Administration said in a statement that authorities "attached great importance" to these safety concerns.

VR Score

82

Informative language

83

Neutral language

41

Article tone

informal

Language

English

Language complexity

61

Offensive language

not offensive

Hate speech

not hateful

Attention-grabbing headline

not detected

Known propaganda techniques

not detected

Time-value

short-lived

Source diversity

1

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