Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) contains Chinese health concepts and practical experience. It is the pearl of Chinese civilization. In the battle against the COVID-19, broad and in-depth application of TCM is very high, and the effect is remarkable. According to incomplete statistics, more than 74,000 people (91.5%) have used traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Among them, more than 60,000 people (90.6%) in Hubei Province use traditional Chinese medicine. Clinical observation showed that the total effective rate of traditional Chinese medicine reached more than 90%.
　　 General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed: “We should follow the development laws of traditional Chinese medicine. We should inherit the essence and innovate while maintaining integrity. We should accelerate modernization and industrialization of traditional Chinese medicine, attach equal importance to traditional Chinese medicine and western medicine, promote the complementary and coordinated development of traditional Chinese and western medicine, promote high-quality development of traditional Chinese medicine and the industry, promote development of traditional Chinese medicine to the world, give full play to the unique advantages of traditional Chinese medicine in prevention and treatment of diseases, and contribute to building a healthy China and realizing great rejuvenation of the country.” The traditional Chinese medicine should deeply study and carry out this important dissertation and firmly grasp the opportunity of the reform and development of traditional Chinese medicine, promote development, inheritance and innovation of traditional Chinese medicine, and earnestly inherit, develop and utilize the precious wealth ancestors left over.
　　 The premise for inheriting the essence is to understand and grasp the essence of traditional Chinese medicine. Traditional Chinese medicine has accumulated a large number of ancient prescriptions among which there are a lot of essences. At the same time, we need to remove the pseudo-preservation and extract the essence. The essence of traditional Chinese medicine, in general, is mainly about traditional Chinese medicine culture of great doctor's sincerity, the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, the theory of dialectical treatment and the academic treatment before the disease is severe, the self-sacrifice character of traditional Chinese medicine who tests more than 100 herbs, the style of traditional Chinese medicine with a wide range of talents and the style of all-inclusion. It is also essence of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in its techniques of watch and hear, examine with simplicity and convenience, to treat the disease dialectically, to help the positive and dispel the evil, to cure the internal and external causes, and to treat the external causes. For the essences, practitioners need to grasp its spirit and idea, use the thought and inherit the academics. The essence inheritance includes not only the collection, arrangement and application of the ancient prescriptions, but also the research, digestion, absorption and transformation of the scientific connotation and thinking idea of the ancient prescription into new technological achievements. Like Tu Youyou, who was inspired by the ancient prescriptions. By employing modern technology to extract artemisinin from Artemisia annua. This kind of inheritance is not only originated from ancient prescriptions, but also surpasses the ancient books, and has the exuberant vitality.
　　 For keeping right and innovation, we need to know what is the right, how to keep the right, what is the innovation, how to innovate, and what is the relationship between the right and innovation. The keeping right of traditional Chinese medicine means to adhere to the dialectical thinking and internal cause theory of traditional Chinese medicine, to adhere to the idea of natural fixation of traditional Chinese medicine, to support the positive and to treat the disease first, and to adhere to the theory, academic and characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine. Keeping right is not to be conservative. it is not about self-reliant or sticking to the old rules. On the other hand, it is about integrating innovations, and keeping the right with innovation. The innovation of traditional Chinese medicine means keeping pace with the times and meet the needs of the people, not only renew and create the secret prescriptions, but also use modern scientific and technological means to innovate the traditional Chinese medicine for its perfection and revitalization. To a certain extent, keeping right is the lifeblood of traditional Chinese medicine, and innovation is where the vigor of traditional Chinese medicine lies. Without inheritance, innovation will lose its roots. Without innovation, inheritance will lose its vitality. Traditional Chinese medicine needs to pursue the dialectical unity of keeking right and innovation, develop with the times and make progress together.
　　 To accelerate modernization of traditional Chinese medicine, it is necessary to apply modern scientific and technological achievements, perfect the theories of traditional Chinese medicine, raise the academic level of traditional Chinese medicine, increase the supply of traditional Chinese medicine services, and meet the people's increasing demand for traditional Chinese medicine. To accelerate industrialization of traditional Chinese medicine, we should promote intensive, large-scale and standardized production, expand the market share of traditional Chinese medicine, improve service of traditional Chinese medicine, upgrade the technology and service level of traditional Chinese medicine, and bring into play the unique role of traditional Chinese medicine. To promote the development of traditional Chinese medicine to the world, we should internationalize traditional Chinese medicine and develop it into a modern mainstream medicine juxtaposed with western medicine. Within the field of traditional Chinese medicine, it is necessary to unify understandings, strengthen confidence and discard the old idea that modernization of traditional Chinese medicine is westernization of Chinese medicine, and to establish the innovative thinking that modernization of traditional Chinese medicine is needed as well as the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine. Traditional Chinese medicine should apply modern science and technology for modernization. Adhere to the theory and thinking of traditional Chinese medicine, adhere to the natural essence of traditional Chinese medicine and people-oriented characteristics, then modern Chinese medicine will not be allianated as western medicine. The researcher, Tu Youyou used modern technology to extract artemisinin from Artemisia annua, which greatly improved the efficacy of the drug, but the basic concept still belongs to the category of traditional Chinese medicine. This provides a new thinking for speeding up the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine and breaks a new path. The traditional Chinese medicine industry should concentrate efforts, highlight key points and jointly tackle key issues. It shall accelerate modernization and industrialization of the cultivation of traditional Chinese medicine, accelerate development and production of modern Chinese medicine, and accelerate modernization and industrialization of traditional Chinese medicine.
　　 Traditional Chinese medicine has its unique advantages in cure of diseases that western medicines always have obstacles. As long as we keep our characteristics, give full play to our advantages, be confident, develop our strengths and avoid shortcomings, and realize the integration with modern science and technology, we can win the trust and respect of the people of all countries in the prevention and cure of diseases and diseases. Traditional Chinese medicine industry should make efforts to go beyond the country, walk into the people of the world to spread the culture, moral characters, thoughts and ideas of traditional Chinese medicine vigorously, provide medical and health services with Chinese characteristics for the people of all countries, and make new contributions to human health.
　　 (The author is the former Minister of Health)

　　 People's Daily (9th edition, June 1, 2020)