Cooperation with China: GHA and BDI demand strengthening of health policy

The health sector is an economic heavyweight and securing its innovation and competitiveness is a cross-industry and societal concern. In Germany, the healthcare industry contributed a full 12% of gross value added in 2018 and was an employer for over 7 million people. Its innovative capacity enables patients to benefit from new prevention, diagnosis and therapy options. As a job engine, it contributes to the creation of jobs. This benefits society as a whole – in the form of innovative therapy options for patients, but also highly qualified jobs. Digitalization enables new types of diagnostics and therapies such as genome sequencing and personalized medicine. Therefore, BDI and GHA are calling for more investment, a clearer strategic alignment and better framework conditions in the fields of health, innovation and digitalization in both internal and external health policy.

China is an important market and partner in health policy issues

The BDI-GHA position paper “Sino-EU and Sino-German Cooperation in Health – How to Unleash the Health Care Sector’s Full Potential for Health and Wealth” calls on the Federal Government and the EU to improve the political framework conditions in Germany and the EU and to cooperate more closely on health issues. Cooperation on health should also be intensified in relations with China. In concrete terms, BDI and GHA are calling for a health policy at national, EU, and multilateral level that is more innovation- and digitalization-friendly. In bilateral relations with China, they would like to see a structural dialogue that identifies and removes trade and investment obstacles in bilateral relations, and which can be expanded through concrete cooperation projects between companies and research institutes. This would ensure fair access to important foreign markets. In addition, the EU and the People’s Republic of China could jointly strengthen the health care of their 1.8 billion inhabitants through close cooperation between science, research, and the health care industry and jointly provide important impulses for global health policy.

GHA and BDI have formulated 5 key demands and are committed to a self-confident and pro-active shaping of German-Chinese and EU-Chinese relations in the health sector. More than 60 concrete recommendations are to provide the impetus for a new strategic orientation in health and industrial policy in the EU.  The health industry is thereby positioning itself both critically and constructively.