Supervision of medical device dealers urged

Online shopping platform operators who embrace sellers of medical devices will face scrutiny as the country’s regulators step up quality checks on the thriving industry.

Signed by Premier Li Keqiang in February and released by the State Council on March 18, a regulation on the supervision and administration of medical devices has adapted to the evolving market to better protect public interests.

The regulation aims to ensure the safety and effectiveness of medical devices, to protect people’s health and safety and to further develop the medical device industry.

According to the regulation that will take effect on June 1, online shopping platform operators should require real-name registration from medical device dealers.

The platforms should review their business licenses and product registration status, and the online dealings must be checked and managed by the platforms, the regulation said.

If e-commerce platforms discover medical device dealers are violating the provisions of the regulation, they should immediately report them to local city-level authorities in charge of drug supervision and administration.

If a serious violation is found, online trading platform services will be stopped immediately, the regulation said.

According to the regulation, the country will also give priority to medical device innovation and encourage clinical applications to sustain high-quality development.

Enterprises are urged to cooperate with universities and scientific research and medical institutions on studies and innovation. Intellectual property rights of medical devices will also be better protected.