Fosun has always devoted to “creating happier lives for families worldwide”.  To realize this dream, it is imperative to meet the needs of our family customers in terms of health, happiness, and wealth. Among all these, I think we should first satisfy their health-related needs, for we can enjoy happiness only when we are healthy.

Over the past few years, Fosun has been continuously stepping up its technological and innovation investments in such areas as drug manufacturing, R&D and innovation, and health management. During the first half of this year, Fosun’s scientific and innovation investments accounted for over 30% of its pre-tax profits, and a significant portion of this represented our investments in the Healthcare segment.

However, during each of these annual CIIEs, I always feel what we have been doing is still highly inadequate after my interactions with the attending industry experts. We still have a lot to do if we are to really help humans live to be 121 years old. Specifically, I feel that we will have to continue to devote our efforts to the following four aspects within the Healthcare segment.

1. Continuously stepping up our technology and innovation efforts

The most important thing about scientific innovation is that you have to be able to withstand loneliness while remaining ready to devote yourself. I remember that 15 years ago when we were beginning with our investments in new drug R&D, the initial stage was basically one of “repeated endeavors followed by repeated failures”. We had not been able to found Henlius until we finally bumped into the teams of Dr. Liu Shigao and Dr. Jiang Weidong in the United States ten years ago. Specifically, after ten years of efforts, HLX01^® - Henlius’ very first product - was finally approved early this year to become China’s first-ever biosimilar drug, and we also have a number of innovative products in the review-and-approval pipeline. This is what makes me feel that our decade-long dedication has been worth it. Other platforms similar to Henlius are becoming increasingly mature, and are being gradually launched onto the market. 

Apart from Henlius, pharmaceutical R&D and innovation centers have been established in countries such as China, the United States, Israel, and India. In particular, the new anti-tumor drug against triple-negative breast cancer developed by Fosun Orinove has secured US clinical permission and entered the express review and approval channel, in respect of which the phase-1 clinical research will be launched soon. We hope to accelerate the relevant R&D work so as to offer a life-saving drug to patients at large as soon as possible.

2. Further enhancing the integration of global resources

Technology represents wisdom that is shared by mankind. Only with across-the-board globalization and wisdom that is gathered from around the globe could the continuous development and iteration of technologies be promoted. This is especially true for the Healthcare sector which is characterized by high R&D risks and substantial R&D costs, where global sharing would also enable more patients to benefit from the latest R&D results and contribute to a reduction in the treatment costs.

Consequently, only two weeks ago, Fosun, together with 7 top VC funds from the US, the UK, Israel and other overseas countries, established the “Global Healthcare Innovation Investment Alliance”. By way of VC investments, we are connecting with world-leading scientists, research institutes and innovative drug enterprises, so as to foster the innovation, opening-up, and resources sharing within the global healthcare sector. This also involves the objective of jointly expanding into broad emerging markets including China, Africa and India.

For example, American technologies are involved in the da Vinci robots that I mentioned just now, and we are conducting relevant R&D and production at Zhangjiang. These robots enjoy a huge room for development in the Chinese market. This time we are also bringing in a few products from Gland Pharma, an enterprise engaged in the production of injectable generic drugs. Gland Pharma is India’s first injectable drug manufacturer to have secured the American FDA certification, with the European and American markets accounting for over 75% of its aggregate sales. As it is widely known that the Indian pharmaceutical industry has earned a nickname as “the pharmacy of the world”, we should leverage on the advantages of Gland Pharma’s big platform in providing global families with affordable drugs.    

3. Reducing or eliminating the chances of people falling ill by refining the closed loop within our health ecosystem

Despite the fact that it has been established for less than 3 years, Fosun United Health Insurance posted a growth of 607% during the first half of this year, which is attributable to the fact that our health insurance, in addition to representing policies for the customers, signifies protection offered by Fosun’s entire Healthcare segment which ranges from health insurance and health management, to professionalized medical care and geriatric care services as well as global-leading innovative drugs and medical equipment.

While we focus on ensuring a decent standard of living for our customers through wealth management, we attach even more importance to reducing or eliminating their chances of falling ill through our health management services. We also offer insurance policies to chronic disease patients with known pre-existing conditions, and have launched a care-and-love scheme for post-surgery patients with breast cancer so as to provide them with care, love and protection.

Besides, I would also like to highlight that many ailments – as the Shanghainese dialect puts it – originate from “deep within”, which means that happiness is of crucial importance to health and longevity. “We are what we eat” – our diet also plays a key role. As a result, in addition to offering pharmaceutical and medical services, we also need to extend products and services that promote well-being and happiness such as health food and tourism, which can be reflected in Foliday’s current slogan “Every Day is Foliday”. Through in-depth collaboration, Fosun-affiliated Starcastle and Foliday have enabled elderly people from Starcastle to enjoy their holiday at Atlantis Sanya and Club Med resorts.  

4. Ensuring the health of more people by making proactive charitable contributions to society

Currently, we have to supply over 100 million artesunate injections to the international market each year, thereby saving the lives of nearly 100,000 people each year, most of whom are African children.

Meanwhile, in late 2017, Fosun Foundation launched the “Rural Doctors Health and Poverty Alleviation” project under the guidance of the National Health Commission (NHC). Currently, 52 impoverished counties on the national level from 13 provinces, cities or autonomous regions have been selected as pilot counties for participation in the project. They include 9 gravely impoverished counties and 4 counties that necessitate dedicated support from the NHC. Assistance has been given to 7,683 administrative village health bureaus, benefiting 2 million deprived families and involving an aggregate support amount of RMB60 million. Going forward, it is planned that the project will cover at least 100 impoverished counties by 2020 for practically enhancing the health standards of the grassroots, contributing to the early realization of the national objectives relating to targeted efforts of poverty alleviation and revitalization of rural areas.

Only through devoting our continuous efforts to these four aspects and steadfastly doing the right thing, the difficult thing, and the thing that needs time to show results which call for efficiency and perseverance, could we ultimately help humans live to be 121 years old.