Change of culture key to reforming archaic healthcare system
- Value for money is paramount if there is to be greater public-private cooperation, even if it entails more government spending
Hong Kong has talked a lot about reform of its healthcare system since colonial times. The latest proposal features in Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s maiden policy address – testament to the fact that much more remains to be achieved. That is not for want of urgency. As Lee said, the “dire consequences” of over-reliance on stressed public hospitals over the years have become more evident, and “we need to change”.
The centrepiece of Lee’s plan is a new primary healthcare authority to shift the emphasis from hospital-based treatment to community-based primary care focused on disease prevention. The authority would coordinate hospital and Health Department services, including private services to be procured for the public.
It involves persuading an ageing population to change an ingrained habit of reliance on hospital treatment. A bait to make the switch would be a HK$500 increase in the HK$2,500 medical voucher for the elderly, so long as the first HK$1,000 of the increased amount is spent on primary, or preventive care.
Another key plank is a three-year pilot scheme for district health offices to refer people at risk of hypertension and diabetes for screening and treatment by private family doctors, with half the cost to be borne by the government, subject to a cap.