Sixth national procurement set to be implemented: A “Reshuffling” Moment for the $10-Billion Medical Device Market

If the first five rounds of national centralized procurement of high-value medical consumables were like "bid openings," the real battle has now begun—the sixth round has officially entered its implementation phase.

In late May, hundreds of medical institutions across the country will uniformly adopt a new pricing directory, covering drug-coated balloons and urological interventional devices. This procurement initiative—impacting a market worth tens of billions of RMB—abandons the “lowest-price-only” approach, explicitly incorporating the principle of “anti-competition-driven inefficiency” into its rules. A profound reshuffling centered on quality, innovation, and supply chain capability is thus accelerating.

In late May, it will be fully implemented, and the first batch of implementation windows have opened.

In mid-April, the National Joint Procurement Office completed the confirmation of distribution arrangements for the sixth batch of centrally procured medical consumables, paving the way for nationwide unified implementation. Entering May, local authorities have intensively disclosed their implementation timelines, with execution schedules becoming increasingly clear.

Hunan Medical Insurance Bureau has issued a notice ahead of others, stipulating thatMay 31, 2026Unify the implementation of the winning results, enterprises and medical institutions shall...July 10thComplete the signing of the tripartite purchase and sales agreement. Jiangxi has taken earlier steps.00:00 on May 15thImplementation will commence immediately and comprehensively, covering six categories of medical consumables in one go—besides the two nationally procured categories, this also includes acupuncture needles, sutures, general interventional devices, and structural heart occluders. Beijing has also specified the implementation window.late MayThe winning results for six categories of medical consumables will be uniformly implemented in the city, with the procurement cycle for certain categories, such as drug-coated balloons, directly extended.December 31, 2028In addition, Guangdong, Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, and other places have already disclosed the implementation times, and the nationwide unified implementation has entered the countdown.

II. The winning bid price has been finalized, with a “moderate” price reduction.

As regions officially announced their results, the price range has become clear. The winning price for drug-coated balloons falls within1677 yuan to 6015 yuanAmong them, the winning enterprises include B. Braun, Boston Scientific, EndoChoice, and Lepu Medical; the selected prices for urological interventional consumables are60 to 1537 yuanThe range is spread out, involving Newguang Wei Medical, Xingeyu, Elton, Tuoren, Weili Medical, Innoway, etc.

What is worth noting is that this time the price reduction is much more moderate than in the past. The winning price of the leading drug-coated balloon enterprise has a reduction of up to the highest effective bid price.35% to 65%Between them—both squeezing the "water" out of the circulation links, and avoiding the extreme low prices that could stifle innovation.

The “anti-involution” orientation at the regulatory level is particularly clear. A major institutional innovation of this procurement initiative is:No longer simply selecting the lowest price to calculate the price differenceWhen the lowest price is too low, use the average price.65%Serving as the price-difference control benchmark, this rule was triggered in 8 out of 20 competitive groups, effectively preventing individual enterprises from undermining the entire group through “suicidal bidding” and thus averting vicious competition.

III. “Centralized Procurement Counters Internal Competition”: Domestic Brands Shine

After the implementation of this “group-based competition + price-difference control + innovation-oriented preference” package, the market landscape is undergoing visible changes.

In the field of coronary drug-coated balloons, domestic Chinese companies have seized a historic opportunity. According to calculations by Guojin Securities, the top three companies by reported volume—Yi Biotechnology, Lepu Medical, and Shenqi Medical—are all domestic Chinese brands.Total share: 48%In the peripheral drug-coated balloon field, domestic brands dominate, with three Chinese companies, Sino Medical, Guichuang Tongqiao, and Xinmei Medical, leading the way.Accounting for as high as 71%。

Urological interventional medical devices have long been regarded as a “blank zone” in centralized procurement, with foreign companies such as Boston Scientific, Medtronic, and Cook dominating the market and domestic products maintaining a low penetration rate. However, this situation has now been completely transformed: 195 companies submitted bids with 454 products, and 170 companies secured selection with 398 products.More than 91% of the brands are domestic.Foreign enterprises retain market share only in a few high-end models.

IV. From Price Wars to Quality Competition, Regulation Achieves Full Coverage

Prices have dropped; can the quality floor be maintained? This is the issue of greatest concern to the competent authorities. In a centralized meeting held by the Shandong Provincial Drug Administration in mid-April, clear requirements were issued to the six local enterprises selected for the program: uphold…"Zero failure" "One failure, all lost" high standards, ensuring that the quality and safety of every batch of products can stand the test. The specific measures are"Four Full Coverages" - Supervision and Inspection, Supervisory Sampling, Monitoring and Evaluation, Training and EducationNot a single one left behind.

Hunan’s notice also directly draws a red line: the winning enterprises are the primary responsible parties for ensuring product quality and supply.Resolutely prevent any behavior of lowering product quality due to price reductions.。

In addition, to address the old issues of some enterprises engaging in "split pricing" and "hidden price increases" during the implementation of centralized procurement, regions such as Guangdong and Hunan have upgraded their strategies. They now require that if a ureteral access sheath does not include a pressure sensor, the company must provide a matching sensor for the product, and the total price of "sheath + sensor" must not exceed the total selected price.

V. The market shake-up has reached the midpoint, and the real game is just beginning.

The procurement rules of the Fifth National Volume-Based Procurement (VBP) prompted many foreign-branded companies to briefly reassess their market positioning in China, while the signals released by the Sixth National VBP are even clearer: the VBP has entered a “refined” competitive phase—where “cost efficiency, R&D capability, and supply reliability” have replaced the previous emphasis on “distribution channels and relationship management.”

For domestic brands, policy has opened the door by lowering the "entry threshold," but the real battle has only just begun. With the nationwide implementation of new pricing in mid-to-late May, the annual demand of 615,000 coronary drug-coated balloons and 1,372,000 urological medical devices will be precisely fulfilled.

A industry analyst has summarized it well: companies that are selected and obtain a significant volume of contractual procurement will experience rapid growth within the next 1-3 procurement cycle. However, the pressure of compressed profit margins will also push companies to continuously strengthen their supply chain optimization and innovation, further increasing industry concentration.

There is no doubt that the centralized procurement has built the road, but whether the market can move towards healthy competition ultimately depends on capability.