Low-end market for pharmaceuticals to be exploited to increase business opportunities in the elderly market

Business News Agency reported on November 29th: "After the new medical reform, the proportion of sales of 307 essential medicines in pharmacies and the gross profit situation have been affected. The improvement of primary health care networks has also weakened the pharmacy advantage. The advent of an aging society gave birth to the pharmaceutical market. New Opportunities.” At the 10th China Pharmacy Summit held recently, how to seize the growing opportunities of the elderly market became a hot topic at the conference.

The social security system has gradually improved and the silver market has increased business opportunities.

Generally speaking, there are two indicators for judging whether the society has entered the ageing population: First, the population aged over 65 accounts for more than 7% of the total population; second, the population aged over 60 accounts for more than 10% of the total population. If you reach any index, you can think of entering the aging population. If calculated by the second standard, China has entered the threshold of aging since 1995 and has been accelerating since then. "The next decade is precisely the period when China's aging population is growing faster and faster." Tang Junru, secretary general of the Social Policy Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said. “The basic needs of the elderly are divided into three aspects: First, there is economic security; second, people need care and the third is the need for affection. These three points have created a lot of demand for the pharmaceutical industry.”

"The report of the 17th National Party Congress pointed out that we must speed up the establishment of a social security system covering urban and rural residents, protect people's basic lives, and ensure social security is an important guarantee for social stability." Tang Jun said that China's social security system has developed rapidly, and urban and rural social assistance system The framework has been laid: In old-age security, the number of urban residents participating in the insurance system has reached 236 million, and 86.91 million people in rural areas have participated in social pension insurance. In 2009, the “New Rural Cooperatives” has begun piloting, and it is expected to reach the goal of full coverage by 2020. In terms of medical insurance, 400 million people in cities and towns have participated in the insurance and rural areas have reached 833 million people. The improvement of the social security system has provided strong support for the expansion of the pharmaceutical market.

“Middle and elderly people, especially those who are richer and middle-aged and middle-income, have a very important position in the entire pharmaceutical terminal market.” Lin Youchen, Minister of China for IMS Global Pharmaceutical Research and Development, for example: A wealthier 50 Older people above the age of the year usually spend 1.2 times more on dietary supplements than a young person. "The 'silver hair market' is a very large market and it is worth deep thinking and digging for the company." Tang said.

Low-end market to be explored, the charm of pension institutions

According to statistics, over 50% of elderly empty-nest households in urban and rural areas in China have a family population of less than 3 people. “More than 200 million people are in a state of fluidity, and rural areas have left more than 18 million leftover elderly people. It is increasingly difficult for young people to perform filial piety. Under such circumstances, the family protection function is shrinking and the children are not around. The care for the elderly can be described as "The whip is beyond the reach." Tang Jun said that the aging process has a greater negative impact on rural areas in China, but it is an opportunity for the pharmaceutical industry: In many cities, chain pharmacies are already over-saturated. Can companies chain pharmacies to rural areas?

“Although in some mature regions, the pharmacy market share is comparable to that of developed countries, and even exceeds that of developed countries, in the annual census, the number of pharmacies is still growing and the entire pharmaceutical retail market is growing. The rural market , it brings a very good opportunity for the development of pharmaceutical retailing, especially OTC products.” Lin Yuechen said that foreign-funded enterprises are usually only in the first-line, and at most also in the third-tier cities, while some domestic powerful companies have begun to The fourth-tier cities are developing, but the development of the rural market is still relatively lacking. Large commercial companies have not yet extensively entered rural and low-end markets. In fact, this market needs different commercial channels.

Another person in the industry stated that it is very concerned about the impact of the “zero-difference rate” sales of drug sales in community health service organizations on pharmacies. He believes that pharmacies should adjust their development ideas as soon as possible to adapt to new situations. For example, they can pay attention to social welfare agencies, nursing homes, etc. These places have great demand for drugs. Some large pharmaceutical groups, if they have spare capacity, can invest in pension institutions. “This may be a very good option. The profits of pension institutions are not too big, they may be around 5%, and good may be 10%. But in China, This will be a prosperous cause."

Diversity of service forms, health management is a trend

“How to seize the growing elderly medical care, nursing market opportunities, and enable the elderly to live a healthy and comfortable life?” Yokota Min, an expert from the Japan Retail Research Institute, took a case from a Japanese drugstore to Chinese companies: In Japan, some The drugstore is committed to professional care, setting up home visits to nursing care centers, and participating in residents' home health care with the nurses to provide infusions and palliative care for the elderly. The medicines and hygiene products needed for the service are from drugstores. Provides; Some drugstores provide preventive services, and carry out "old daytime services" like kindergartens. They set up special facilities for the elderly to prevent them from bedridden and prevent the conversion of high blood pressure or other chronic diseases. In order to maintain and improve the self-care ability of the elderly, some pharmacies join hands with convenience stores to provide convenient services for the elderly. They can not only accept prescriptions, but also provide diapers and other care products.

In the Taiwan Province of China, which accounts for 10% of the elderly population, the pharmacy industry is also developing and changing. Gong Rongmao, chairman of the China Store Management Association, said that because of the increase in the number of elderly people, Taiwan drugstores are developing in two directions: first, more specialized; the government encourages pharmacies to apply for Medicare drug use; second is to create “safe, healthy, beautiful, and reassuring”. Concepts, the development of so-called convenience pharmacies: this type of pharmacy to serve the residents as the core, located close to the community, to provide pharmacological care for the elderly, provide prenatal guidance for pregnant women, etc., if targeted to provide some dietary supplements, pregnant women When you encounter certain symptoms of pregnancy, you can get advice from pediatrics and gynecologists at pharmacies. "When pharmacies go in the direction of non-pharmaceuticals, they must seize the core of 'professionalism'. Otherwise, there will be no difference with ordinary retail stores." Gong Rongmao said that pharmacies try to provide mothers with a very safe environment for new life from pregnancy to birth, In the process of growing up, they will all spend at this pharmacy.

“The development trend of urbanization and aging in China makes the pharmaceutical retail industry provide a very broad space for providing health care, retirement, and socialization services.” Director of the Department of Market Order of the Ministry of Commerce Xiang Xin said, “Japan is moving from an aging society to old age. The process of social evolution took only 24 years, and China will also be a process of rapid aging from 2010 to 30 years in 2040. The World Health Organization had predicted that in the future, China will surpass the speed of Japan. Enter the super-aging society.”

Yokota Min reminded Chinese companies of the social conditions in Japan: The aging society will inevitably lead to high medical expenses for the elderly, leading to a crisis in the health insurance system. “In the medical insurance system, for example, in Japan, the medical expenses for a person under the age of 65 are 68,000 yen for one year, 432,000 yen for people over the age of 65, and medical expenses for the elderly over 65 years of age. Expenditure accounted for 80% of the country's total expenditure on medical expenses, while per capita expenditure on medical care would rise sharply for those over the age of 70, especially those over 75. The most important medical expenses are chronic diseases such as high blood pressure and high blood pressure. Blood lipids and other expenditures. Chronic diseases are mainly caused by living habits. If people improve their lifestyles, then chronic diseases will be effectively controlled.” Yokota Min believes that if pharmacies can take up this function, then pharmacies will Play an important role in medical reform.

In fact, there have been commercial insurance companies keenly aware of this. It is understood that in Beijing and Shanghai, commercial insurance companies have begun to marry drug stores, because the two target groups are more consistent, insurance companies use the pharmacy customer base to expand health insurance business, but also to participate in the entire drug supply chain to reduce The cost of compensation. If commercial health insurance is combined with pharmacies on a large scale, the pharmacy will gradually evolve from a third-party health insurance management to a third-party comprehensive health management platform and have the opportunity to become a real PBM (medical welfare management company). Then, the era of comprehensive health management It is coming.