The origin of the medical imaging industry can be traced back to 200 years ago. In the 18th century, German scientist Roentgen discovered X-rays and took the first X-ray film. The following year, X-rays began to be used in medical clinics. Since then, using the principle of X-ray imaging diagnosis, it has gradually developed into an independent radiological technology discipline in the medical community, and the medical imaging industry was born.
To this day, in clinical diagnosis in hospitals, doctors usually ask patients to take films through medical imaging diagnostic equipment, and make more accurate diagnoses of patients' conditions through medical films or medical imaging PACS systems that carry medical images. The medical imaging industry belongs to the sub-industry of medical devices, mainly including imaging diagnostic equipment, imaging output equipment, imaging output materials, imaging system software and other major products. At present, the imaging, storage and output processes of medical images have basically been digitized, that is, the images formed are stored in digital form in the computer system of medical institutions, and then printed out using media such as medical imaging output equipment and medical films.
A. National policies encourage the development of the medical imaging industry, and the future development prospects of the industry are broad
In recent years, the Chinese government has continuously issued policies to support the development of the medical imaging industry. Made in China 2025 proposes to improve the innovation capability and industrialization level of medical devices, and focus on the development of high-performance diagnostic and treatment equipment such as imaging equipment and medical robots; The 14th Five-Year Plan for the Development of Medical Equipment Industry points out that it is necessary to thoroughly sort out clinical needs such as smart medical care, mobile medical care, telemedicine, and hierarchical diagnosis and treatment, promote the integration of medical equipment services with new technologies such as cloud computing and big data, and explore standardized development solutions such as medical imaging cloud, surgical planning cloud, third-party medical testing, artificial intelligence-assisted diagnosis, and intelligent rehabilitation follow-up; The Guidance Catalog for Industrial Structure Adjustment (2024 Edition) lists high-performance medical imaging equipment as a national encouraged development project. Therefore, the Chinese government promotes the development and rise of my country's medical imaging industry from a strategic height, and the future development prospects of the industry are broad.

B. The aging population brings about a long-term increase in the demand for medical imaging

According to the standards issued by the United Nations, the proportion of people over 60 years old in the total population reaches 10%, or the proportion of people over 65 years old in the total population reaches 7%, which is a sign that the country has entered an aging society. Since 2000, the proportion of people aged 65 and above in China has reached 7%. According to the data of the Ministry of Civil Affairs' "2023 National Aging Development Bulletin", by the end of 2023, the number of people aged 60 and above in China will be 296.97 million, accounting for 21.1% of the total population; the number of people aged 65 and above in China will be 216.76 million, accounting for 15.4% of the total population. According to Japan's experience, the per capita medical expenses of residents over 65 years old are 26 times that of residents aged 45-64, and they increase gradually with age, and the demand for medical resources also increases. Therefore, the increase in the elderly population in the future will bring about a rapid growth in the demand for medical imaging.

C. The hierarchical diagnosis and treatment system promotes the continuous development of the medical imaging industry

In 2015, my country issued the "Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Construction of the Hierarchical Diagnosis and Treatment System". The country actively promoted the construction of the hierarchical diagnosis and treatment system across the country. The main purpose of the hierarchical diagnosis and treatment reform is to achieve the four goals of "grassroots referral, two-way referral, acute and chronic separation, and linkage between upper and lower levels". Tiered diagnosis and treatment is one of the important directions of my country's medical reform. The goal is to reasonably guide and redistribute medical resources, promote the sinking of medical resources, and thus improve the diagnosis and treatment capabilities of primary medical institutions.

According to statistics from the National Health Commission, by the end of 2023, my country has a total of 1.071 million medical and health institutions, including 39,000 hospitals, 12,000 professional public health institutions, and 1.016 million primary medical and health institutions. The primary medical institutions, which account for 94.86%, only undertake 50.7% of the national diagnosis and treatment work. There is still a lot of room for the implementation of the tiered diagnosis and treatment system. At present, the allocation rate of medical imaging in primary medical institutions is relatively low. In the future, as the policy is implemented, more primary medical institutions will be equipped with medical imaging equipment, have medical imaging diagnosis capabilities, and undertake more diagnosis and treatment work, which will bring more opportunities to the medical film industry.