30-Sep-16 The Kim Young-ran Act, which came into force on 28-Sep-16, bans receiving gifts worth more than a certain amount, and complying with unfair requests. The law is also expected to change 'rebate culture,' which harms fair competition in Korea's pharmaceutical industry. For a long time, the culture was pervasive. [image: Business Korea]

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29-Sep-16 Plans to turn an unused shoe factory in the US city of Auburn, Maine, into a medical tourism centre for Chinese patients are faltering. Chinese investment company Miracle Enterprise plans a 200-room recovery centre for wealthy Chinese seeking medical care at the Central Maine Medical Center. Miracle Enterprise needs to find USD40 mn, but is struggling to attract investors. [image: IMTJ]

29-Sep-16 The Philippines is poised to take advantage of the global medical tourism market, positioning itself as a provider of excellent and affordable hospital care. The country’s advantages include modern facilities, fluency in English, good infrastructure, proximity to Asia’s major cities, “and the ability of a caring local community to help in total healing in body, mind and spirit.” [image: Department of Tourism, Philippines]

29-Sep-16 Chinese companies have announced more than USD5.2 bn of overseas healthcare acquisitions in 2016, a 15-fold jump from 2012. "Even though China’s pharmaceutical industry is still in the middle of consolidation and price wars, we hope to escape from this and do more work in terms of innovation and internationalization," said Shao Yan, CEO of China Grand Pharma. [image: China Grand Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Holdings Ltd]