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Following is a question by the Hon Christopher Chung and a written reply by the Secretary for Food and Health, Dr Ko Wing-man, in the Legislative Council today (December 18):
Question:
The Government has implemented the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme (EHCVS) since January 2009. Under EHCVS, all elderly people aged 70 or above are each provided annually with 20 healthcare vouchers of $50. Regarding the implementation of EHCVS, will the Government inform this Council :
(a) of the current number of elderly people in the territory eligible for using the healthcare vouchers;
(b) whether it will consider afresh lowering the minimum age requirement for EHCVS to 65; if it will, of the estimated additional expenditure to be incurred and the implementation timetable; if not, the reasons for that;
(c) of the current number of elderly people who have never used the healthcare vouchers and its percentage in the total number of eligible elderly people; whether the authorities have examined the reasons why these elderly people have never used the healthcare vouchers; if not, whether they will do so;
(d) of the major channels and modes by which EHCVS is publicised among elderly people at present; given that some elderly people have pointed out that as the current television announcement in the public interest (API) for EHCVS mainly convey to them the message that they can register for using the healthcare vouchers at any clinic with the EHCVS logo, quite a number of elderly people have mistakenly thought that the healthcare vouchers may only be used to pay for consultation and treatment fees of western medicine practitioners, whether the authorities will launch APIs which clearly inform the elderly people that the healthcare vouchers can also be used to pay for the healthcare services provided by other healthcare service providers such as Chinese medicine practitioners, chiropractors, dentists, physiotherapists, registered or enrolled nurses, medical laboratory technologists and optometrists, etc.;
(e) given that at present, members of the public can obtain the List of Enrolled Healthcare Service Providers by (i) visiting the eHealth System of the Health Care Voucher website, or (ii) calling the recorded message telephone system of the Health Care Voucher Unit of the Department of Health, but these two channels are too complicated for average elderly people, whether the authorities will conduct studies on ways which are more convenient for the elderly people to make enquiries, e.g. providing a telephone hotline answered by real persons and providing the elderly people, verbally or by mail, with information on suitable healthcare service providers based on their districts of residence, types of their illnesses, medical needs, etc.;
(f) as quite a number of elderly people have limited mobility or cannot leave home to consult doctors because of their illnesses, and some elderly people suffering from chronic illnesses require regular home visits by healthcare workers to provide them with services, whether the healthcare vouchers may be used to pay for outreach home medical and nursing services at present; if so, whether the authorities have publicised this; if not, whether they will make such arrangements expeditiously; and
(g) of the number of cases in which healthcare service providers have been found to have involved in frauds taking advantage of EHCVS since EHCVS was launched, the amount involved, and the channels through which the authorities have uncovered such cases; whether the authorities have taken the initiative to conduct random checks on suspicious cases?
Reply:
President,
My reply to the Hon Christopher Chung's question is as follows:
(a) According to the Hong Kong Population Projections 2012-2041 published by the Census and Statistics Department, the number of elders aged 70 or above is about 723 500 in 2013.
(b) The Government launched the Elderly Health Care Voucher (EHV) Pilot Scheme in January 2009 to subsidise local residents aged 70 or above to use private primary care services, including preventive care. Since January 1, 2013, the annual voucher amount for each eligible elder has doubled from $500 to $1,000. The Scheme will be converted from a pilot project into a recurrent support programme for the elderly in 2014. After the Scheme is regularised for a period of time, the Administration will conduct further review of its effectiveness.
The financial implications of lowering the eligible age for EHV from 70 to 65 are set out at Annex.
(c) Since introducing the Scheme in 2009, about 550 000 eligible elders have used the vouchers, representing about 76% of the existing eligible elderly population. The Administration carried out an interim review on the EHV Pilot Scheme in 2010, and conducted an opinion survey on those who had not used the vouchers. The major reasons for not doing so included: (i) the healthcare professionals they usually consulted were not under the Scheme; (ii) they were used to using the public healthcare sector; and (iii) they were healthy and did not need any care treatment.
(d) The Government has been promoting the Scheme to the public through various publicity activities and media, including broadcasting the announcements in public interest (APIs) on television and radio, distributing DVDs/posters/leaflets in public hospitals and clinics, elderly centres and care homes for the elderly, displaying posters in shopping arcades of public housing estates, and broadcasting APIs and messages in railway facilities.
The publicity leaflets, DVDs and EHV website provide detailed information on the healthcare services and categories of healthcare professionals covered by the Scheme. Shots of medical practitioners, Chinese medicine practitioners, dentists and optometrists featured in the latest series of APIs. In future, we will consider using different materials and format to promote the use of EHV, including the healthcare services covered by the Scheme (e.g. services provided by dentists and physiotherapists).
(e) At present, elders can access the List of Enrolled Healthcare Service Providers under the Scheme from the eHealth System website or get a facsimile copy from the enquiry hotline for the EHV Scheme. They may also contact staff of the Health Care Voucher Unit of the Department of Health (DH) via the EHV enquiry hotline for the relevant information. We will consider further enhancing our support in this regard.
Publicity materials and publications on EHV are available at general out-patient clinics, public hospitals, Senior Citizen Card Office, Elderly Health Centres, 18 District Offices, District Elderly Community Centres, Neighbourhood Elderly Community Centres, residential care homes for the elderly and individual healthcare service providers.
(f) EHV can be used to pay for services provided by private healthcare service providers enrolled in the Scheme. There is no restriction on the mode of service delivery, such as on-site or outreach healthcare services. Where necessary, we will enhance publicity to disseminate this message through different channels.
(g) To ensure proper reimbursement claims by enrolled healthcare service providers and prudent use of public money, the DH has put in place measures and procedures for checking and auditing voucher claims. These include: (i) routine checking of voucher claims records through inspection to the clinics of service providers; (ii) routine surveillance through the eHealth System to detect irregularities in use of vouchers so as to take timely follow-up and investigation actions; and (iii) investigation into complaints received.
The DH conducted about 7 100 inspections and checked about 130 500 claim transactions for reimbursement over the past four years or so. A total of 91 cases involving about 1 900 claim transactions and $564,700 of voucher value were found not in compliance with the established reimbursement procedures and requirements. These cases were due mainly to errors in procedures or documentation. Only a few was referred to relevant law enforcement agencies for follow-up.
Ends/Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Issued at HKT 19:22
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