How Hainan is pioneering the future of China's healthcare

From rare disease therapies to cutting-edge biomedical research, patients are experiencing real changes in China's medical frontier at the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone in south China's Hainan Province.

On December 18, 2025, China launched island-wide special customs operations in the Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP), marking a historic milestone in its ongoing economic reforms. Against this backdrop, the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone has emerged as a model of healthcare innovation. Since its establishment in 2013, Lecheng has grown from underdeveloped land into a modern medical hub, achieving barrier-breaking growth in the field of innovative medicine.

For families struggling with rare diseases, Lecheng is more than just policy on the paper. Liang Jing's son has been diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), a rare genetic condition affecting approximately 70,000 children in China. Such rare diseases gradually rob patients of mobility and strain the heart and lungs. Traditional medicine such as prednisone helps, but it comes with severe side effects, including obesity and stunted growth. At Lecheng, however, Liang's son gained access to Vamorolone, the first DMD therapy approved in both the US and EU, made available in China through Lecheng in April 2024. The results have been remarkable: under careful dosing, her son's disease progression slowed, his growth continued and his mood stabilized.

Lecheng's approach shows a new path for patients in China. Normally, a new drug proven overseas must undergo a regulatory marathon of three to eight years before entering China's domestic market. In Lecheng, however, innovative medicines already approved abroad can be specially imported for patient use. As Huang Kengrui, assistant director of Boao Super Hospital, puts it: "Before, patients waited for drugs. Now, drugs wait for patients." 

By January 2026, 182 such authorized drugs had been administered across 15 clinical departments, attracting patients not only from China but also from countries like Vietnam and Greece, Xinhua News Agency reports.

The pilot zone has also become a testing ground for the future of healthcare. From cutting-edge stem cell therapies to brain-machine interface research, Lecheng has pioneered the clinical application of new biomedical technologies. According to official data, by May 2025, more than 200,000 patients had benefited from special policy support that enabled 530 advanced medicines to be introduced into Lecheng.

Patients' experiences highlight the advantages of these measures. Mr. Gao, a vitiligo patient from Shandong Province in northeast China, shared his appreciation with Xinhua in a recent report. 

"I had tried many medicines with little effect and was about to give up. Now, a specially authorized medicine I can get from Lecheng has significantly improved my skin. Hainan's policies have given me hope," Gao said.

The data collected at Lecheng is also transforming healthcare and medicine. Xinhua reports that real-world evidence from patient use can accelerate domestic drug approval, sometimes in as little as 14 months. The zero-tariff policy reduces production costs for imported medical devices by roughly 25%, fast-tracking more inclusive and accessible healthcare. Based on data published by the local authority, by the end of 2025, Lecheng had leveraged real-world clinical data to help bring 21 international innovative drugs to the Chinese market faster, with four of these treatments incorporated into the national medical insurance system.

Lecheng stands as a testament to what targeted opening-up policy, medical innovation and clinical expertise can achieve. Families from China and around the world witness firsthand how previously unattainable treatments, pioneering technologies and data-driven approaches are transforming lives. Here, innovative healthcare is more than a concept; it is a life-changing reality.