China further curbs overuse of antibiotics

China's health authority on Tuesday announced plans to further curb the overuse of antibiotics, including setting caps for the variety and use ratio of antibiotics, and punishing doctors found to misuse antibiotics.

The Ministry of Health limited the varieties of antibiotics a hospital could have according to its grade and function. For instance, a top-level general hospital can have a maximum of 50 varieties of antibiotics; children's hospitals, 50; psychiatric hospitals, 10; and stomatology hospitals, 35.

The use ratio, the share of antibiotics among all prescription drugs, has also been capped. The cap for general hospitals is 60 percent, for example.

Moreover, if doctors are found to use antibiotics inappropriately, they will be subjected to penalties ranging from warnings, suspensions or cancellations of their prescription-writing rights, to having their licenses withdrawn.

Doctors' clinical prescription performances will be factored into their overall performance evaluations which affect their income and promotion prospects, according to plans.

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