The 14th Five-Year Plan for Medical Equipment Released, Covering Seven Key Areas

Today (December 28), the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the National Health Commission, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the National Healthcare Security Administration, the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and the National Medical Products Administration jointly issued the Notice on the “14th Five-Year Plan” for the Development of the Medical Equipment Industry (hereinafter referred to as the “Plan”).

The Plan states that during the 13th Five-Year Period, China’s medical equipment industry experienced rapid development and swift market expansion, with the market size reaching RMB 840 billion in 2020 and an average annual compound growth rate of 11.8%. The manufacturing system has been essentially established, giving rise to a product portfolio comprising more than 1,100 varieties across 22 major categories that covers all aspects of health and wellness, thereby largely meeting the needs of Chinese medical institutions for diagnosis and treatment, elderly care, chronic disease prevention and control, and emergency response.

The enterprise sector has grown robustly, with more than 2,300 industrial enterprises above designated size generating main-business revenue of RMB 413.4 billion, representing an average annual compound growth rate of 11.6%. A number of well-coordinated, specialized industrial clusters have emerged. Meanwhile, product technology has advanced rapidly, with breakthroughs in key technologies such as superconducting magnets, electron accelerators, and radio-frequency spectrometers. Orthopedic surgical robots, third-generation artificial hearts, and focused ultrasound therapeutic systems have reached internationally advanced levels, establishing the region as a major global manufacturing base for medical equipment.

However, it must not be overlooked that the imbalance and inadequacy in the development of China’s medical equipment industry remain prominent, with persistent shortcomings and weaknesses in critical core technologies, the security and stability of industrial and supply chains, and the promotion and application of innovative products.

The “Plan” sets forth five major objectives:

By 2025, the foundational capabilities of the medical equipment industry will be significantly upgraded, and the modernization level of the industrial chain will be markedly enhanced. Mainstream medical equipment will achieve effective supply, while the performance and quality of high-end medical equipment will see substantial improvements, thereby establishing initial comprehensive capacity to meet public health and healthcare needs.

Optimizing and upgrading the entire industrial chain. There is an urgent need to address critical bottlenecks and shortcomings in medical equipment, including basic components and devices, foundational software, essential materials, core manufacturing processes, and the underlying technological infrastructure, so as to initially establish an industrial and supply chain that is highly innovative, delivers high value-added, and is safe and reliable.

Technological capabilities continue to improve. Medical equipment is being deployed on a large scale across multiple domains, including prevention, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, health promotion, and public health. A number of high-end products, such as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) systems, endoscopic surgical robots, 7T whole-body human MRI systems, and integrated proton–heavy-ion therapy systems, have already been put into clinical use.

Corporate vitality has been significantly enhanced. Leading medical equipment firms have seen a substantial boost in their ecosystem leadership and core competitiveness, giving rise to a number of global champions in niche segments as well as a cohort of “little giant” enterprises that possess core technologies and distinctive manufacturing processes. Meanwhile, large, medium, small, and micro-sized enterprises are achieving integrated and coordinated development.

The industrial ecosystem is steadily improving. Multi-dimensional collaborative innovation models—such as medicine plus industry, hospitals plus factories, and physicians plus engineers—have been preliminarily established, driving rapid development of health and medical services. New business forms, including telemedicine, mobile health, smart healthcare, precision medicine, and traditional Chinese medicine–specific care, are undergoing comprehensive and innovative development.

Brand influence has increased markedly. Recognition of medical equipment products, brand reputation, and international influence have all risen rapidly, significantly enhancing China’s position in the global industrial division of labor and value chain; six to eight Chinese companies have now ranked among the top 50 in the global medical device industry.

By 2035, the research and development, manufacturing, and application of medical equipment will be elevated to world-leading levels. China will rank among the forefront of innovation-driven nations in the field of medical equipment, providing robust support for delivering comprehensive, life-course health services that safeguard the well-being of the people.

Focus on developing seven major medical device sectors.

Diagnostic Testing Equipment

Develop next-generation medical imaging equipment, advancing its智能化 (intelligentization), remote operation, miniaturization, speed, precision, multimodal integration, and integrated diagnosis-and-treatment capabilities. Develop new in vitro diagnostic devices and novel high-throughput, intelligent, precision drug-testing systems; tackle key technological challenges in advanced cell-analysis equipment; and enhance the performance and quality of multifunctional, integrated testing and analytical instruments as well as point-of-care testing (POCT) devices.

Medical equipment

Focus on breakthroughs in precision radiotherapy equipment, including multi-modal high-definition image guidance, simultaneous single-session treatment of multiple tumor targets with a single patient setup, high-precision positioning and dose guidance, and adaptive radiotherapy treatment planning systems (TPS).

Focus on breakthroughs in intelligent surgical robots, accelerating progress in key technologies such as rapid image registration, high-precision positioning, intelligent human–robot interaction, and multi-degree-of-freedom precision control. Develop high-performance therapeutic devices utilizing ultrasound, electrical current, magnetic fields, lasers, and interventional techniques. Promote the advancement of therapeutic equipment toward greater precision, minimally invasive procedures, speed, intelligence, and reusability.

Monitoring and Life Support Equipment

Develop new monitoring devices for brain injury, brain development, cerebral oxygen saturation, and magnetoencephalography; advance remote monitoring technologies; and enhance the intelligence and precision of such equipment.

Promote the upgrading, replacement, and performance enhancement of dialysis equipment, ventilators, and other medical devices. Conduct research and development on medical-grade wearable monitoring devices and artificial organs that leverage novel sensors, advanced materials, microfluidic controllers, specialized medical chips, artificial intelligence, and big data.

Traditional Chinese Medicine Diagnostic and Treatment Equipment

Leverage the unique advantages of traditional Chinese medicine in disease prevention, treatment, health maintenance, and rehabilitation; guided by TCM theory, deeply explore original TCM resources; develop TCM-specific equipment that integrates new technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, and wearable devices; and prioritize the development of TCM diagnostic and therapeutic devices for pulse diagnosis, tongue diagnosis, acupuncture, moxibustion, and rehabilitation.

Promote the standardization, remote delivery, large-scale expansion, and digital transformation of TCM clinical diagnosis and treatment and health services.

Maternal and Child Health Equipment

Develop equipment for disease prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and health promotion that addresses the specific needs of women and children. Conduct research to develop diagnostic and analytical software and equipment for promoting healthy pregnancies and child development.

Develop wearable health-monitoring devices for prenatal and postnatal care as well as for pediatric health, and promote the application of such devices in the transport, resuscitation, life support of critically ill newborns, and early screening for infant and young child–related diseases. Advance the remote, wireless, and customized development of maternal and child health equipment.

Health Rehabilitation Equipment

Develop new nursing and rehabilitation equipment based on robotics, intelligent visual and voice interaction, brain–machine interfaces, human–machine–electrical integration, and intelligent control technologies; and conduct research to overcome key technical challenges in intelligent rehabilitation robots, intelligent gait-assistance systems, multimodal rehabilitation wheelchairs, exoskeleton robotic systems, and other smart devices.

Promote the systematic, customized, and intelligent development of traditional health-preserving and rehabilitation equipment systems, including tuina massage, traction therapy, phototherapy, electrotherapy, magnetic therapy, energy therapy, exercise therapy, spinal realignment and bone-setting, and rehabilitation assistive devices.

Enhance the capacity to supply specialized rehabilitation equipment for balance-function assessment and training, language assessment and training, psychological adjustment, and other related interventions.

Active Implantable Medical Devices

Accelerate the research and development of active implantable medical devices, including implantable cardiac pacemakers, interventional therapies for heart failure, and neurostimulation devices. Develop bioactive composite materials, artificial nerves, biomimetic skin tissues, in vitro culture of human tissues, and technologies for organ repair and replacement.

Promote the application of advanced materials and technologies such as 3D printing to enhance the biocompatibility and performance of implantable medical devices.

Focus on breakthroughs in critical components, supply chain resilience, and technological platform capabilities.

With regard to basic parts and components, the document calls for support through key special projects under the National Key R&D Program, and for the continued advancement of cutting-edge fundamental research in such areas as diagnostic and therapeutic equipment and biomedical materials, reproductive health and health protection for women and children, proactive health and scientific and technological responses to population aging, and the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine.

Encourage cross-sectoral collaboration between medical equipment and such industries as new materials, electronic information, aerospace, nuclear industry, and shipbuilding; strengthen coordinated research and development across the upstream–downstream value chain—covering materials, components, and complete systems—and accelerate efforts to address critical bottlenecks and shortcomings that constrain industrial development, including foundational parts and components, basic software, basic materials, and fundamental manufacturing processes.