Chinese senior lawmaker urges relentless gov't crackdown on fake, inferior drugs

A senior Chinese lawmaker on Saturday called on the government to better regulate the price and quality of medicine.

Li Jianguo, vice chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, made the remarks after leading a five-day legislative inspection of pharmaceutical companies, wholesalers, retailers, and medical institutes in Shandong Province.

He said fake, inferior, and over-priced drugs are a huge public concern. Despite laws to address the situation, problems remain due to certain departments turning a blind eye to illegal activity by pharmaceutical businesses.

Li said there should be "zero tolerance" for irregularities and a serious crackdown was needed to get the public back on side.

He stressed that changes must start from strengthening the administration capacity, particularly at the grassroots levels, to ensure drug supervision is improved.