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Dec. 20 (NBD) -- Lepu Medical Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd announced that it will invest 300 million yuan (45.4 million U.S. dollars) to jointly set up a life insurance company limied by shares with other enterprises and it will hold a 10.4895 percent stake in the new company. 

Known as a healthcare platform with a whole industry chain in the cardiovascular field, Lepu Medical expressed its urgent needs to form the strategic partnership or alliance with the commercial health insurance enterprises, so as to upgrade its healthcare products and services.

NBD noticed that Lepu Medical is not the only listed pharmaceutical company that has made investments in the health insurance field over the past several years. The health insurance has become the main investment target for pharmaceutical enterprises aiming to create linkage effects between health insurance and pharmaceutical sector, the two important links in the chain of the healthcare industry.

For example, Aier Eye Hospital last year announced that its controlling shareholder Tibet Aier Medical Investment Co. Ltd. as well as other 5 listed companies set up Aier Health Insurance Co. Ltd, with a registered capital of 1 billion yuan (151.4 million U.S. dollars).

Chinese society is seeing an aging population. According to the statistics from Ministry of Civil Affairs of China, in 2016, the number of people over the age of 60 reached about 231 million, accounting for 16.7 percent of the total population, with a year-on-year rise of 0.6 percent, and the number of those aged 65 years and older stood at around 150 million, 10.8 percent of the total, increasing 0.3 percent compared with last year.

Such circumstances will create a large market for the health insurance and pension insurance sectors, said Wang Qianjin, CEO and CHO of Aegon THTF Life Insurance. 

Wang further pointed out that the healthcare and health management in the upstream, the insurance in the midstream and the infrastructure for elderly care in the downstream can form a whole industry chain.

In the future, the insurance sector is expected to build a full industrial chain, providing not only products but also solutions for the elderly , Wang added.

As Chinese government encourages the development of the health insurance industry, the commercial health insurance market still needs to be fully explored. 

Email: zhanglingxiao@nbd.com.cn