Chinese authorities have promised to help domestic companies develop and produce high-end medical equipment.

With 70% of the country’s advanced medical equipment (such as nuclear magnetic resonance and CT scanners) currently bought from General Electric, Siemens and Phillips, the authorities are also urging the country’s leading hospitals to introduce more domestic medical equipment to reduce costs for patients.

Zhang Qiang, CEO of United Imagine — a Shanghai medical-equipment producer — explains that PET-CT scanners, which produce higher-resolution images for early diagnosis of cancer and early detection of brain and heart disease, are not widely used in China due to the high costs associated with imported equipment.

“A PET-CT scan generally costs 10,000 yuan in China, but with domestic products being introduced into the market, the cost of a scan could come down to about 2,000 yuan. We expect this service to be covered by medical insurance.”