According to Ma Kai, drag prices in China now ______.

Ma Kai, the Director of China’s National Development and Reform Commission, says the Chinese government has lowered drug prices 22 times in the last few years on 1,600 kinds of drugs, in some cases several times. But despite those moves, Ma says, drugs are still so expensive the average Chinese often can’t afford them. Ma was speaking Wednesday on the sidelines of China’s annual legislative session, the National People’s Congress. He said when the government orders a drug’s price to be lowered, some drug companies simply changed the product’s name or the packaging and continue charging the same high price. He also said some hospitals rely on profits from drug sales to fund their operating costs.  Ma says a comprehensive reform of the healthcare system is needed.