China plans to allow wholly-owned foreign hospitals in Beijing, Shanghai and seven other cities or regions, the Ministry of Commerce said on Sunday.

Foreign entities will be allowed to set up such hospitals in Beijing; Tianjin; Shanghai; Nanjing, Jiangsu province; Fuzhou, Fujian province; Guangzhou and Shenzhen in Guangdong province; and Hainan province, the ministry said in a statement released on its official website.

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The hospitals should not specialize in traditional Chinese medicine, it specified.

The specific conditions, requirements and procedures for establishing the hospitals will be released later, said the statement, which was jointly released by the National Health Commission and the National Medical Products Administration.

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The move comes as part of efforts aimed at expanding the opening-up of the healthcare sector, attracting foreign investment to promote the high-quality development of medical services and better meeting the medical needs of the public, the statement said.

It added that from Sunday, foreign-invested enterprises are allowed to research and develop technologies focused on human stem cells, gene diagnosis and treatment in the pilot free trade zones in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong province, as well as the Hainan Trade Free Port.

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They can also apply for market registration and mass production licenses in China for their products and those approved can be used nationwide.

The statement also called for the stepping up of services for foreign enterprises willing to participate in trial programs.