Tag Archives: China

     Following is a question by the Hon Sunny Tan and a written reply by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, in the Legislative Council today (April 10):
 
Question:
 
     It has been reported that in the first nine months of last year, the Hong Kong Police Force received a total of over 23 000 cases involving telephone and online fraud, and the situation was getting more rampant. Regarding the prevention of telephone fraud, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) whether it will explore the feasibility of introducing a “whitelisting” registration mechanism for caller identity so that members of the public can identify calls from whitelisted agencies or organisations, such as telecommunications service providers, banks, government departments and commercial organisations, in order to reduce their fraud risks;
 
(2) how it will take the initiative to combat fraud by enhancing cross-‍bureau, cross-government department and cross-sector coordination and cooperation, such as working together with government departments or quasi-government organisations related to innovation and technology to review, study and develop platforms (such as mobile applications) for implementation of call whitelisting; and
 
(3) as it is learnt that many fraudsters would make frequent and random phishing calls to different telephone numbers by cold calling in search of victims, whether the Government will consider proactively following up unusual behaviour of suspicious users who make frequent phone calls by strengthening cooperation with the telecommunications industry and drawing reference from the “Know Your Customer” authentication process adopted by the banking industry, so as to prevent crimes relating to fraudsters making frequent phone calls in search of victims?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     In view of the trend of phone deception, the Government has been taking a multi-pronged approach to combat phone deception vigorously. In response to the Member’s question, in consultation with the Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA), the Security Bureau, the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF), the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, our reply is as follows:
 
(1) and (2) The Government understands that members of the public are very concerned about unsolicited calls and recognises the need to protect them from scams and nuisances. Various government departments have also launched different measures to help members of the public distinguish legitimate calls, including:
 
(i) OFCA has established a mechanism to provide designated telephone numbers to government departments or public organisations in need for their communications with the public. Examples of such include the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’s one-stop service hotline 1823 or the HKPF’s Anti-Deception Coordination Centre hotline 18222. OFCA will continue to encourage government departments and public organisations to apply for telephone numbers with designated prefixes when making calls to the public to assist members of the public to recognise calls from government departments and public organisations;
 
(ii) OFCA will further expand the SMS Sender Registration Scheme (the Scheme) to government departments, public organisations, and statutory bodies that need to communicate with the public via text messages. Under the Scheme, all participating companies or organisations will use Registered SMS Sender IDs with the prefix “#” when they send SMS messages to local subscribers of mobile services, so as to further help members of the public verify the identities of SMS senders and raise their anti-deception awareness, guarding against telephone and SMS fraud. As of end February this year, major telecommunications service providers, banks, and 11 government departments or statutory bodies (such as the Immigration Department, the Department of Health, the HKPF, the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department, the Transport Department, the Consumer Council, the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority, etc.) with needs to communicate with the public via SMS messages have participated in the Scheme. OFCA will continue to actively invite more government departments, public organisations, and statutory bodies as well as the Legislative Council which use text messaging to communicate with the public to participate in the Scheme;
 
(iii) In response to OFCA’s active appeal, major telecommunications service providers have been providing their users with call-filtering services. Among which, such services provided by individual service providers are free, including providing complimentary call management services for elderly customers to encourage their use of these services and mitigate the problems caused by suspicious and nuisance calls. Additionally, there are currently many call-filtering apps available for use by members of the public and these apps have been widely used by the public. OFCA has coordinated the information of various call-filtering apps available in the market currently and uploaded to its thematic website to encourage members of the public to download. These call-filtering apps can help screen scam calls and telemarketing calls, as well as identify calls from government departments, public organisations and statutory bodies in general. OFCA has also been visiting various districts and working with Legislative Council Members as well as District Councillors since the end of last year to appeal to members of the public to beware of phone scams and assist them to download relevant call-filtering apps;
 
(iv) The HKPF has added an automated function in February this year to identify fraudulent calls in the mobile application of “Scameter+” which will automatically compare the calls received by users and visited websites with the latest fraudulent database. When potential fraud or network safety risk is detected, a warning alert will be issued to users for early detection and prevention of fraud. Users can also report suspicious phone calls or websites through the public reporting platform of the application to ensure the relevant database remains updated and accurate. The Government will continue to strengthen public promotion of “Scameter+” to encourage members of the public for downloading, such as through access and promotion for downloading “Scameter+” through various websites and mobile applications of various government departments. As of end February this year, the search engine has recorded over 2.5 million searches and issued over 430 000 alerts on fraud and cyber security risks. The number of downloads of “Scameter+” has also increased from 228 000 at end January this year to 315 000 as at March 21; and
 
(v) To further manage person-to-person telemarketing calls, OFCA has proactively invited relevant industries to collaborate and implement industry self-regulation. There are currently four industries, namely finance, insurance, telecommunications, and call centres, participating in establishing the Benchmark Code of Practice on Person-to-Person Marketing Calls (the Code of Practice) to regulate the manner in which industry professionals make person-to-person telemarketing calls. OFCA is actively contacting and coordinating with the relevant industries to strengthen and update their Code of Practice. OFCA has also reached out and invited other industries to participate in the aforementioned self-regulation arrangements. We aim to collaborate with different industries to establish the Code of Practice as soon as possible, with a view to enhancing the self-regulation arrangements.
 
     As regards the suggestion of implementing the “whitelist of incoming calls” to identify legitimate incoming calls, considering that this may involve hundreds of thousands of telephone numbers used by government department and public organisations as well as the number of users being affected, and that the nature and requirements of their telephone communications services with the public may vary, if a “whitelist of incoming calls” is to be implemented, the time needed for preparation and transition by individual departments and organisations may differ. This includes making large-scale changes to their current telephone systems, hotline/office telephone numbers, and it will take time to inform each user about the updated telephone numbers, etc. We anticipate that the related processes and the transitional period will take time to complete, which may cause confusion and inconvenience to the public in between. Moreover, current communication technologies may not entirely prevent the possibility of calls on the “whitelist” being spoofed. Having considered the above factors, we need to carefully and thoroughly study whether the related proposal is effective and worth implementing.
 
(3) Regarding the proposals mentioned in the question about “customer authentication” and “proactively following up on suspicious users”, the Government has fully implemented the Real-name Registration Programme for SIM Cards (RNR Programme) in February 2023, requiring that all SIM cards issued and used locally (including SIM service plans (SSP) and pre-paid SIM (PPS) cards) must complete real-name registration before service activation.
 
     OFCA has been collaborating with telecommunications service providers to ensure the effective implementation of the RNR Programme, including to request telecommunications service providers to conduct regular sample checks and follow up on suspicious PPS cards, and to refer cases suspected of using false identity documents to the HKPF for follow-up actions, assisting the HKPF in combating phone deception. As of end February this year, telecommunications service providers have cancelled registration records of around 1.23 million non-compliant PPS cards in accordance with the registration requirements of the RNR Programme. Around 1.59 million PPS cards were rejected since the clients failed to provide information in compliance with the registration requirements.
 
     In addition, OFCA has formulated the Code of Practice, requiring telecommunications service providers to monitor calls originated from their networks since last year. Once call patterns of suspected phone deception are identified (e.g. making a large number of fraudulent calls within a short period of time), the services of the relevant phone numbers will be suspended immediately. As of end February this year, about 520 000 local telephone numbers were thereby suspended. Furthermore, OFCA will also periodically revise the code to ensure that it can effectively block scam calls.
 
     As regards other facilitative measures to combat telephone and SMS fraud, OFCA, the HKPF and the major telecommunications service providers have established a working group since September 2022 to implement a range of measures from telecommunications perspectives to combat telephone and SMS fraud. According to the advice of the working group, telecommunications service providers, based on the fraud records and information provided by the HKPF, proactively block or suspend services of the telephone numbers suspected to be involved in fraud cases, and block users from accessing suspicious fraud websites. As of end February this year, upon the HKPF’s request, telecommunications service providers have successfully intercepted more than 8 100 website links involved in fraud cases and blocked or suspended more than 2 700 telephone numbers suspected to be involved in fraud cases.
 
     In addition, the HKPF launched various anti-deception measures in collaboration with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the banking sector. Among others, the Faster Payment System (FPS) Suspicious Proxy ID Alert was rolled out in November 2023. Under the mechanism, FPS is linked to “Scameter” of the HKPF. During online fund transfer via FPS, the matching function of the database can identify payees whose information is related to scam reports. In such cases, an alert message will appear on the confirmation page of the transaction. As of end February this year, alerts covering high-risk transfers of over $600 million were issued from the system.
 
     According to the HKPF’s information, since the introduction of the above-mentioned measures, the average number of telephone fraud cases in the fourth quarter of 2023 has dropped by 38.1 per cent when compared to the same period in 2022, reflecting the positive effect of these measures in combating telephone fraud. OFCA will continue to step up collaboration with the HKPF and telecommunications service providers to conduct public education and publicity with a view to disseminating anti-deception messages to all members of the public in a comprehensive manner.
 
     All in all, the most effective anti-deception means for members of the public is to remind themselves, their families and their friends to stay highly vigilant at all times. If members of the public receive calls from strangers, regardless of the displayed number, they should stay highly vigilant and should not disclose personal information or transfer money to unknown callers to avoid suffering from losses. read more

     The Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Mr Lam Sai-hung, today (April 10) called on the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council and met with representatives from the National Railway Administration and China State Railway Group Co., Ltd in Beijing.

     In the morning, Mr Lam called on the Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr Xia Baolong, to brief him on the latest work progress on Hong Kong’s maritime, aviation and logistics developments, including an introduction of the Action Plan on Modern Logistics Development and the Action Plan on Maritime and Port Development Strategy promulgated late last year. Mr Lam said that under the support of the National 14th Five-Year Plan and the Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), Hong Kong will continue to consolidate and promote its status as an international maritime centre and aviation hub by leveraging its distinctive advantages of enjoying the strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world. Mr Lam also expressed his gratitude to the motherland’s staunch support for Hong Kong in better utilising transport infrastructures such as the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link to facilitate the integration of Hong Kong and the Mainland. Mr Xia fully recognised the work of the Transport and Logistics Bureau.

     Mr Lam also met with the Administrator of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), Mr Song Zhiyong, in the morning to brief him on the latest developments in Hong Kong’s aviation industry and discuss arrangements to further enhance the aviation connectivity between Hong Kong and the Mainland. Mr Lam also expressed gratitude to the CAAC and the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. for arranging the visit of aircraft C919 and ARJ21 to Hong Kong in December last year, allowing Hong Kong citizens to share the country’s achievements in aviation developments.

     In the afternoon, Mr Lam separately met with the Administrator of the National Railway Administration, Mr Fei Dongbin, and representatives from the China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. He expected to maintain close communication with both sides so as to continuously enhance high-speed rail services to cater for the needs of passengers.

     Mr Lam arrived in Beijing yesterday (April 9) and had a meeting with the Minister of Transport, Mr Li Xiaopeng. Mr Lam introduced to him Hong Kong’s transport and logistics developments in air, land and sea. They exchanged views on how to bring high-quality development to the GBA. Mr Lam also visited Beijing Daxing International Airport yesterday where he toured the control tower and terminal to understand their operations.

     Mr Lam concluded his visit and returned to Hong Kong this evening.

                  

     Following is a question by the Hon Lau Kwok-fan and a written reply by the Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, in the Legislative Council today (April 10):
 
Question:
 
     In the 2023-2024 Budget, the Government increased the tobacco duty rate by about 31.5 per cent and estimated that the revenue from tobacco duty for that financial year would increase accordingly by 19 per cent to about $9.4 billion. However, according to the 2024-2025 Budget presented in February this year, the estimate of the revenue from tobacco duty for the 2023-2024 financial year has been revised to about $8.6 billion. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the reasons for the downward adjustment of the estimate of the revenue from tobacco duty for the 2023-2024 financial year in the latest Budget; given that according to the figures from the Customs and Excise Department, the revenue from tobacco duty for the first 10 months of the 2023-2024 financial year is only about $5 billion, of the reasons why the authorities are confident that the revenue from tobacco duty for the 2023-2024 financial year will be up to the revised estimate of about $8.6 billion;
 
(2) given that the Government increased the tobacco duty rate by about 31.5 per cent in the 2023-2024 Budget, and the revised estimate of the revenue from tobacco duty for that financial year represents only an increase of about 8 per cent over the actual revenue from tobacco duty for the 2022-2023 financial year, whether it has studied the reasons for that;
 
(3) given that according to the 2024-2025 Budget, the estimate of the revenue from tobacco duty for that financial year is about $9 billion, of the basis on which the Government made the relevant estimate; and
 
(4) whether, before the Government decided to increase tobacco duty again in the 2024-2025 Budget, it had gained a full understanding of the impact of the increase in tobacco duty in the previous financial year on the various aspects of society, including whether there has ‍been a situation in which smokers have switched to buying duty-‍not-‍paid cigarettes, resulting in the revenue from tobacco duty falling short of the estimate; if it had, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     Having consulted the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau and the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department (C&ED), the reply to the various parts of the Hon Lau Kwok-fan’s question is as follows:
 
     Hong Kong is facing an ageing population and sees a continuously rising number of chronic disease patients, while smoking is the most important and preventable risk factor leading to chronic diseases and deaths. The smoking prevalence (Note 1) of Hong Kong has dropped continuously from 14.4 per cent in 2002 to 9.5 per cent in 2021. Yet there are still about 580 000 people in Hong Kong who are daily smokers of conventional cigarettes, and a considerable portion of them belong to the lower income group in the society, which is the group that can least afford tobacco-induced health problems and economic damage. Smoking will only continue to exacerbate the health and economic disparity between the rich and the poor, and the whole society and the healthcare system will have to pay a heavy price for smoking-induced diseases. Preliminary data from a local study conducted in 2021 revealed that the economic loss resulting from tobacco-induced health problems was estimated to be about $8.2 billion per year. There is a genuine need for the Government to put in place more proactive measures to minimise the harmful effects of tobacco on the society.
 
     As a result, the Government has announced in the 2024-25 Budget an increase of tobacco duty on cigarettes by 80 cents to $3.306 per stick, following a raise of 60 cents in the previous year. It is the first time over the past 20 years for tobacco duty to increase in two consecutive years. This serves not only to ensure that cigarette prices maintain at a certain level which helps prevent a rebound in smoking prevalence, but also convey a clear message to the society on the Government’s commitment and determination to safeguard the overall health of the public.
 
     Increasing tobacco duty is recognised internationally as the most effective means of reducing tobacco use. The World Health Organization (WHO) pinpoints that every 10 per cent increase in cigarette price will reduce the overall tobacco consumption by 4 per cent in high-income countries. Tobacco duty is a public health policy of which the objective is to provide a greater incentive for smokers to quit smoking through raising the costs of smoking, while the high prices of tobacco will also dampen the eagerness of non-smokers, the youth in particular, to smoke. Therefore, the effectiveness of tobacco duty should be evaluated by whether it can effectively reduce the number of smokers, rather than the amount of additional revenue it brings to the Government.
 
     The past experience in increasing duty indicated that the greater the tax hike, the larger the number of calls received by the Department of Health (DH)’s smoking cessation hotline as well as the drop in smoking prevalence. According to the latest statistics from the DH, after the increase of tobacco duty last year, the number of calls received by the DH’s smoking cessation hotline increased over 30 per cent from about 7 400 in 2022 to about 9 700 in 2023. Subsequently, during the period from the announcement of the increase in tobacco duty in this year’s Budget to April 7, the DH’s smoking cessation hotline received 1 858 calls, meaning an average of 325 calls per week, which is nearly three times the average number of calls per week in the previous three months.
 
     Preliminary findings of the Thematic Household Survey (THS) conducted by the Census and Statistics Department on smoking pattern show that there are indeed signs of a decline in smoking prevalence after the increase in tobacco duty in 2023, with preliminary data indicating that the smoking prevalence has further dropped to 9.1 per cent. The details of the relevant survey results will be officially released in mid-2024.
 
     According to C&ED’s figures, the revenue from tobacco duty for the first 11 months of 2023-24 was about $7.2 billion. The Government’s revenue estimates are based on the best available information at the time of preparing the Budget, and the actual figures of various revenue items are affected by a number of factors. For tobacco duty, the overall demand for tobacco products depends on a number of factors, including the level of tobacco duty and the rate of increase, the pricing strategies of tobacco companies, the price elasticity of tobacco products, and the overall economic situation. The Government expects that the increase in tobacco duty in 2024 will further reduce the demand for tobacco products. In preparing the revenue estimates for 2024-25, the Government has also made reference to the WHO’s estimation regarding the impact of the increase in tobacco retail prices on the demand for cigarettes. 
 
     It should be noted that the number of duty-paid cigarettes increased significantly during the epidemic, with about 4 billion duty-paid cigarettes imported annually between 2020 and 2022, representing an increase of nearly 20 per cent as compared to 2019. However, the survey of 2021 shows that neither the number of smokers nor the amount of cigarettes consumed rebounded significantly. As such, it is believed that the increase in the quantity of duty-paid cigarettes during the epidemic was mainly attributable to the fact that cross-boundary travel was greatly affected during the epidemic and the public were unable to bring back duty-free cigarettes (Note 2) through boundary control points, resulting in a substantial increase in the local demand for duty-paid cigarettes.
 
     Since the return to normalcy and full resumption of cross-boundary travel in early 2023, the number of cross-boundary passenger trips at various boundary control points, especially land control points, has rebounded significantly, while at the same time the number of duty-paid cigarettes has dropped back to roughly the pre-epidemic level. This is also a major reason why the tobacco duty revenue for 2023-24 was lower than the original estimate. The number of duty-paid cigarettes for 2023 (about 3.07 billion sticks) is lower than that of 2019 (about 3.37 billion sticks) by about 9 per cent, which is comparable with the decline in smoking prevalence over the same period. The relevant data clearly reflected that the notion of a significant reduction in duty-paid cigarettes as a result of illicit cigarettes is not substantiated, and that the increase in tobacco duty in 2023 did help reduce the demand for tobacco after excluding the factors of the epidemic and resumption of cross-boundary travel.
 
     As regards the concerns in the community that the illicit cigarette market would become more rampant following the increase in the tobacco duty, both the WHO and the World Bank have pointed out that there is no direct correlation between the increase in tobacco duty and illegal tobacco trade activities. Exaggerating illicit cigarette trading activities is the most common tactic used by the tobacco industry to counteract effective tobacco control measures, especially the increase of tobacco duty. Combatting illicit cigarette trading activities and raising tobacco duty should be regarded as complementary measures.
 
     In combatting illicit cigarettes, the C&ED will continue to adopt a multi-pronged approach and take stringent enforcement actions at all levels to combat the hawking activities of illicit cigarettes. The increase in the number of seizures of illicit cigarettes reflects the effectiveness of the C&ED’s stepped-up enforcement actions against illicit cigarettes and the success of its enforcement strategy does not denote an expanding scale of illicit cigarettes activities. As a matter of fact, according to C&ED’s analysis, the situation of illicit cigarettes has been contained recently.
 
     Targeting the distribution of leaflets about smoking products in public housing estates, the Tobacco and Alcohol Control Office (TACO) of the DH has established a co-operation mechanism with the Hong Kong Police Force and the Housing Department. Whenever any distribution of leaflets about smoking products is detected, the staff of the housing estate concerned will contact the Hong Kong Police Force for assistance and the case would be subsequently referred to TACO for further investigation.
 
     The Health Bureau (HHB) is also considering implementing legislative measures with the C&ED to curb illegal hawking activities, including examining how to effectively implement measures relating to the labeling of duty-paid cigarettes so as to enhance the enforcement effectiveness in differentiating duty-paid cigarettes from duty-not-paid cigarettes.
 
     The Government will continuously review the effect of tobacco control measures as a whole and the pace of future adjustments in tobacco duty, with a view to achieving the target of 75 per cent duty proportion as recommended by the WHO. The ultimate aim is to further lower the smoking prevalence so that the whole society and the healthcare system does not have to pay a heavy price for smoking-induced diseases.
 
     To further reduce smoking prevalence, the Government conducted the Vibrant, Healthy and Tobacco-free Hong Kong public consultation on tobacco control strategies last year. The HHB is exploring to roll out different tobacco control measures in a phased approach, and plans to give an account of the next step of work in due course. 
 
Note 1: Smoking prevalence refers to the proportion of population who are daily smokers of conventional cigarettes and aged 15 and above.
Note 2: Under the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance (Cap. 109), a person aged 18 or above may bring into Hong Kong 19 cigarettes duty-free for his own personal use. read more

     The second annual session of the 14th National People’s Congress (NPC) and the second session of the 14th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee were successfully held in March. The Chief Executive’s Policy Unit (CEPU) today (April 10) held a seminar at which members of the CEPU Expert Group shared their insights on the key content of the “two sessions” this year and their implications for Hong Kong’s future development through in-depth exchanges and discussions.
 
     The seminar was hosted by the Head of the CEPU, Dr Stephen Wong. Four CEPU Expert Group members, who are themselves deputies to the NPC and members of the CPPCC National Committee, were invited to give keynote remarks. They include the Vice-chairperson of the HKSAR Basic Law Committee, Professor Wong Yuk-shan; Hong Kong deputies to the NPC, Mr Nicholas Chan and Mr Allen Yeung; and Hong Kong member of the CPPCC National Committee, Professor Charles Ng.
 
     Speaking at the seminar, Dr Wong pointed out that the government work report presented during this year’s “two sessions”  carried significant highlights on the parts related to Hong Kong and development proposals pertaining to various matters. All sectors of the community are proactively studying, promoting and implementing the spirit of the “two sessions”. By convening this seminar and listening carefully to the views and suggestions from the Expert Group members, he wished to tap their insights on the opportunities for Hong Kong and the specific policy measures that Hong Kong might pursue. The four keynote speakers shared the important messages of the “two sessions” and their takeaways from these sessions. The seminar was held in hybrid mode, and attended by more than 30 Expert Group members. During the Q&A session, meeting attendees raised questions to the four keynote speakers and they had in-depth and lively exchanges and discussions.
     
     Dr Wong said, “I am very grateful to Professor Wong, Professor Ng, Mr Chan and Mr Yeung for sharing with the fellow Expert Group members their understandings and insights on the content of the ‘two sessions’. Many of the directions of development underpinned by the ‘two sessions’ are of great significance and relevance to Hong Kong, including the integrated development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the accelerated development of new quality productive forces, the promotion of innovative developments of the digital economy, the development of a high-quality education system, boosting self-reliance and strength in high-quality science and technology, the upholding of Hong Kong’s status as the international financial centre, the promotion of green and low-carbon development, and the proactive linkage with high-standard international trade rules and regulations etc. Members of the Expert Group agreed that Hong Kong should consider ways of giving full play to its unique advantages under the ‘one country, two systems’ principle, capitalising on its strengths in finance, innovation and technology, and professional services, etc, and assuming its role as the ‘super connector’ and ‘super value-adder’, so as to contribute to our country’s high-quality development and grasp the development opportunities therein.”
 
     As an internal research organisation, the CEPU will analyse the valuable views and suggestions put forward by the experts in this seminar. It will continue its efforts of conducting strategic and forward-looking research so as to provide the Chief Executive with various viewpoints and research bases.
 
     The CEPU announced in May 2023 the establishment of the CEPU Expert Group, which comprises members of different backgrounds including business, finance, professionals, think tanks and academia to provide expert views and new ideas to the CEPU concerning various topics. For the membership of the Expert Group, please refer to the website of the CEPU (www.cepu.gov.hk). read more

     Following is a question by Professor the Hon Chan Wing-kwong and a written reply by the Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, in the Legislative Council today (April 10):

Question:

     The Government released the Primary Healthcare Blueprint (the Blueprint) on December 19, 2022. Regarding the latest implementation situation of the Blueprint, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the current numbers of various types of healthcare professionals who have enrolled in the Primary Care Directory, and the percentages of such numbers in the total numbers of the relevant healthcare professionals;

(2) given that the Blueprint has proposed to introduce a Chronic Disease Co-Care Scheme, and the related pilot scheme was launched on November 13 last year, of the implementation situation of the pilot scheme; whether the authorities will further extend the disease areas covered by the pilot scheme; if so, of the details; and

(3) given that the Blueprint has proposed to progressively enhance the role of Chinese medicine practitioners in the delivery of primary healthcare services, of the specific measures introduced by the authorities in relation to such proposal and their latest implementation situation?

Reply:

President,

     In face of the pressure brought about by an ageing population and the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases, the Government released the Primary Healthcare Blueprint (Blueprint) in December 2022, setting out a series of reform initiatives to strengthen primary healthcare services in Hong Kong. Strategies are prevention-oriented, community-based, family-centric and focus on early detection and intervention, with the vision of improving the overall health status of the population, providing coherent and comprehensive healthcare services, and establishing a sustainable healthcare system. The Government is progressively taking forward various recommendations of the Blueprint over the short, medium and long term.

     The reply to the respective parts of the question raised by Professor the Hon Chan Wing-kwong is as follows:

(1) Currently, the Primary Care Directory (Directory) is a web-based database (www.pcdirectory.gov.hk), with three sub-directories (doctors, dentists and practising Chinese medicine (CM) practitioners) at the moment, which set out practice information and professional qualifications of primary healthcare service providers in the community. It enables members of the public to access information of service providers such as their practice addresses, telephone numbers, consultation hours, service provisions as well as their participation in various government-subsidised programmes. As at February 29, 2024, there are 3 757 doctors, 395 dentists and 2 326 CM practitioners enlisted in the Directory.

     Following the announcement of the Blueprint, the Government has committed to advocate the concept of “Family Doctor for All” to tie in with the development of primary healthcare services. In this regards, with effect from October 6, 2023, only doctors enlisted in the Directory are allowed to take part in various government-subsidised primary healthcare programmes, including District Health Centre (DHC) services, the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme (EHVS), the Vaccination Subsidy Scheme, the Residential Care Home Vaccination Programme, the Colorectal Cancer Screening Programme and the Hospital Authority (HA) General Outpatient Clinic Public-Private Partnership Programme (GOPC PPP), with a view to standardising the arrangements across various subsidised programmes. Furthermore, the Government launched the three-year Chronic Disease Co-Care Pilot Scheme (CDCC Pilot Scheme) in November 2023, which is the first major initiative after the announcement of the Blueprint, to establish family doctor regime and position the DHC and DHC Express as a hub in fostering the expansion of healthcare network at the community level. The above requirement to be enlisted in the Directory is also applicable to the CDCC Pilot Scheme. Compared with the number at the announcement of the Blueprint at the end of 2022, the number of doctors enlisted in the Directory has increased by around 40 per cent in February 2024. In the long run, in accordance with the Blueprint, the Government will gradually extend the application of this requirement to other primary healthcare service providers. 

     Meanwhile, in order to promote cross-disciplinary collaboration in providing comprehensive primary healthcare services, the Government will continue to establish sub-directories for allied health professionals. The Government will accord higher priority to developing sub-directories for physiotherapists and occupational therapists considering that they are extensively involved in primary healthcare services on different diseases, especially in terms of chronic diseases and long-term care.

     In the long run, in line with the recommendations of the Blueprint, the Government will transform the existing Directory into the Primary Care Register (PCR) which will serve as a central register for all primary healthcare professionals. The Government will, in the long run, offer appropriate training and establish qualification requirements for healthcare professionals enlisted on the PCR. The Government will ensure that doctors participating in the subsidised programmes must be enlisted on the PCR and participate in the continuing medical education applicable to their professions, with a view to continuously enhancing the quality of primary healthcare services.

(2) The CDCC Pilot Scheme provides subsidised screening services in the private healthcare sector to Hong Kong residents aged 45 or above with no known medical history of diabetes mellitus (DM) or hypertension (HT). As at March 27, 2024 (provisional figures), around 30 000 members of the public and over 500 family doctors have participated in the scheme. Among which, over 15 000 participants have completed the screenings for DM and HT, and nearly 6 000 (i.e. over 30 per cent) of those who had completed screenings have been diagnosed with prediabetes (Note), DM or HT. These patients can proceed to the treatment phase and will be subsidised by the Government to continue their treatment with self-selected family doctors, and subject to their health conditions, be offered prescribed medication, follow-up care at nurse clinics and allied health services.

     Given the pilot nature of the CDCC Pilot Scheme, the Government will conduct evaluation on its overall effectiveness. The Government has commissioned a local university in the first quarter of 2024 to conduct a study to assess the extent to which the objectives of the scheme are met and the overall performance, including the service quality and effectiveness, as well as the cost-effectiveness. In addition, the Government will review the service model and operational details of the CDCC Pilot Scheme in a timely manner and make enhancements as necessary to ensure its effectiveness. The Government will, having regard to the outcomes of the review, consider whether to expand the service scope of the CDCC Pilot Scheme, including the fesibility to integrate the GOPC PPP under the HA into the CDCC Pilot Scheme.

(3) Being an integral part of Hong Kong’s healthcare system, the CM plays an important role in the area of primary healthcare. The 18 Chinese Medicine Clinics cum Training and Research Centres (CMCTRs) currently provide services for about 1.5 million attendances each year on average, of which the annual quota of Government-subsidised outpatient services has increased from about 600 000 to 800 000 since October 2023, representing a surge of over 30 per cent. The Hong Kong’s first Chinese Medicine Hospital will also provide a series of Government-subsidised outpatient services when it commences operation by phases since the end of 2025.

     In fact, the resources in the CM sector are mostly concentrated in the private sector. More than 90 per cent of CM practitioners practice in the private market, providing around 10 million attendances for CM outpatient services every year, which has established a strong service network at the community level. Through the EHVS, the Government provides eligible elderly person with an annual voucher amount of $2,000 to subsidise their use of private primary healthcare services provided by 14 categories of healthcare professions (including CM practitioners). In the past three years, the amount claimed by the eligible elderly person for using CM services under the EHVS has increased year-on-year. In 2023, the amount claimed was nearly $1,141 million, accounted for the second highest among the 14 categories of healthcare professions. The Government has launched a three-year Elderly Health Care Voucher Pilot Reward Scheme in November 2023. If an elderly person has accumulated voucher spending of $1,000 or above on designated primary healthcare services such as disease prevention and health management services within the same year (from January to December), a $500 reward will be automatically allotted to his/her healthcare voucher account, which can be used on the same designated primary healthcare purposes, hence enabling them to harness the benefits of the CM in disease prevention and management.

     As for the DHCs, the operators will procure services from non-government entities in the community and establish the DHC network (including CM practitioners). Members with stroke, knee osteoarthritis and low back pain may opt for CM services. Network CM practitioners will provide acupuncture and acupressure treatment to these patients having regard to their needs. In addition, CM practitioners will also provide disease prevention, health maintence and health education, including group activities on dietary therapy. The DHCs will also collaborate with the CMCTRs to provide or promote Tianjiu service in the centres. 

     The Government will continue to develop various primary healthcare services (including CM services) in accordance with the Blueprint to utilise resources of both public and private CM sectors. Meanwhile, the involvement of the CM in the primary healthcare reference frameworks will be further explored with a view to unleashing the potential advantage of the CM in health management and facilitating cross-disciplinary collaboration in primary healthcare services. In the long term, with a view to better leveraging on the strengths and advantages of the CM, the Government will continue to strengthen the role of the CM in primary healthcare services, enhance cross-disciplinary collaboration,and look into opportunities for further synergies with the CM in primary healthcare services with a focus on chronic disease prevention and health management through development of relevant training, publicity and promotion, health assessment, preventive care and introduction of new programmes with the involvement of the CM.

     In parallel, the Health Bureau is collaborating with the CM sector to formulate the CM Development Blueprint, in which a comprehensive review on the long-term strategies and planning for the development of the CM services will be conducted, covering issues such as the role of the CM in primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare, as well as the use of the CM in disease prevention, treatment and rehabilitation throughout the life cycle.

Note: A blood glucose level ranging from 6.0 to 6.4 per cent for glycated haemoglobin or a fasting glucose level of 6.1 to 6.9 mmol/L. read more