At a press conference held by the joint prevention and control mechanism of the State Council in May, relevant official introduced the work of strengthening the quality management of medical supplies and standardization the market order.

At the conference, the Ministry of Commerce responded that China has not and will not impose restrictions on the export of medical supplies, and will provide more substantial support to the global community in fighting the pandemic. Since March, China has exported major supplies for epidemic prevention and control valued CNY 10.2 billion after inspection, including 3.86 billion face masks, according to the General Administration of Customs.

Recently, the Announcement of Ensuring the Orderly Export of Medical Supplies (hereinafter referred to as the Announcement) was issued by the Ministry of Commerce, General Administration of Customs and National Medical Products Administration (NMPA). Someone interpreted the Announcement as that China will restrict or even halt the export of critical medical supplies. Jiang Fan, a first-level inspector of the Department of Foreign Trade of the Ministry of Commerce, emphasized that China has not and will not restrict the export of medical supplies. In accordance with the Announcement, over 2,000 medical device manufacturers have obtained the registration certificate of products approved by relevant drug administrations in China. There are sufficient suppliers for the foreign purchasers to choose, without worrying about the supply quality.

From March 1 to April 4, China has exported major supplies for epidemic prevention and control valued CNY 10.2 billion after inspection, according to Jin Hai, Director with the Department of General Operation of the General Administration of Customs. Specifically, these supplies include 3.86 billion face masks valued CNY 7.72 billion, 37.52 million protective suits valued CNY 910 million, 2.41 million infrared thermometers valued CNY 331 million, 16,000 ventilators valued CNY 310 million, 2.84 million test kits for COVID-19 and 8.41 million pairs of goggles. The customs departments will continue to enhance supervision, optimize services and provide support for qualified and reputable enterprises to ensure the orderly export of medical supplies.

By March 31, the NMPA has approved 25 test kits in an emergency, including 17 nucleic acid test kits and eight antibody test kits, according to Zhang Qi, deputy director with the Department of Medical Device Regulation under NMPA.