Lu Chongmao: The Hong Kong Department of Health is continuously deepening the reform of the medical and health system.

On February 25th, Professor Chan Hon-mao, Director of the Hong Kong Health Bureau, responded in writing to questions from Member Chen Wing-kwong at a Legislative Council meeting, stating that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) government is increasing cooperation with mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) on the basis of complementary advantages and mutual benefit, while ensuring alignment with the development interests of Hong Kong and the mainland. This is aimed at enhancing the overall level of medical expertise in the region, allowing specific groups of Hong Kong residents (including those working, living, or aging in the mainland) to choose to receive medical services in the mainland through pilot measures or lead programs. In 2024, the Elderly Medical Voucher GBA Pilot Program was launched, with phased expansion starting in June of the same year to cover seven comprehensive medical/dental service institutions in the GBA, including Guangzhou, Zhongshan, Dongguan, and Shenzhen. Shenzhen has two designated dental specialist clinics to meet the dental service needs of the elderly. In response to positive feedback from society, the SAR government announced the expansion of the pilot program in May 2025, adding 12 medical institutions to cover all nine mainland cities in the GBA, achieving the goal in August of the same year. Together with the University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital, eligible elderly individuals can use medical vouchers at a total of 21 service points in mainland cities within the GBA, allowing them more choices for medical treatment and saving them from the inconvenience of travel, thus bringing them a sense of happiness. Professor Chan continued that when formulating cross-border medical measures, the SAR government not only considers the needs of Hong Kong citizens but also evaluates whether the policies will impact the social resources and lives of the GBA and the mainland as a whole. The Health Bureau is continuously deepening the reform of the medical and health care system to ensure that Hong Kong maintains high-quality medical services and efficient healthcare systems, with no intention to transfer the main responsibility for medical services to neighboring cities. The SAR government will continue to closely monitor the progress of various cross-border medical cooperation measures and explore feasible measures in accordance with the principle of complementary advantages and mutual benefit to better support the medical needs of Hong Kong citizens, including considering expanding the scope of cooperation with other mainland medical institutions in the GBA. The original text is as follows: The following is the question raised by Member Chen Wing-kwong at the Legislative Council meeting today (February 25) and the written response from Professor Chan Hon-mao, Director of the Health Bureau: Question: With the integrated development of cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) in recent years, many Hong Kong residents have been crossing borders to use mainland medical services. In light of this, can the government inform this Council: (1) Whether the government is aware of the overall situation of Hong Kong residents crossing the border to use mainland medical services, including the number of users, and the main medical services involved; (2) The number of participants and feedback from participants in the "Support GBA Hospital Authority Patient Pilot Program" and the "Elderly Medical Voucher GBA Pilot Program" since their launch; (3) Since the launch of the MediConnect mobile application in July 2024 to provide the functions of "cross-border health records" and "personal medical record folders", allowing citizens to use electronic health records in designated overseas medical institutions, and storing medical records obtained when seeking medical treatment overseas in MediConnect, the number of users of these two functions and their feedback so far; and (4) Whether the government will strengthen cooperation with mainland medical institutions to provide more cross-border medical services, including expanding the "Pilot Program" and "Trial Plan" to more suitable mainland medical institutions; transferring patients to suitable mainland medical institutions for further tests or treatment according to patients' wishes; and actively building a Greater Bay Area medical record mutual recognition mechanism, etc., to better respond to the public's demand for cross-border medical services and alleviate the pressure on public hospitals in Hong Kong? Response: Chairman: In response to Member Chen Wing-kwong's question, after consulting the Department of Health and the Hospital Authority (HA), the answer is as follows: The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) government is increasing cooperation with mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) on the basis of "complementary advantages and mutual benefit," while ensuring alignment with the development interests of Hong Kong and the mainland. This is aimed at enhancing the overall level of medical expertise in the region and allowing specific groups of Hong Kong residents (including those working, living, or aging in the mainland) to choose to receive medical services in the mainland through pilot measures or lead programs. In recent years, the SAR government has actively promoted pilot plans and trials to assist or facilitate specific groups of Hong Kong residents in using medical services in the mainland. Information on the number of users, main medical services involved, and feedback from participants in these plans and measures are as follows. The government does not keep records of Hong Kong residents using medical services in the mainland under non-SAR government plans. (1) In 2024, the Elderly Medical Voucher GBA Pilot Program was launched, with phased expansion starting in June of the same year to cover seven comprehensive medical/dental service institutions in the GBA, including Guangzhou, Zhongshan, Dongguan, and Shenzhen. Shenzhen has two designated dental specialist clinics to meet the dental service needs of the elderly. In response to positive feedback from society, the SAR government announced the expansion of the pilot program in May 2025, adding 12 medical institutions to cover all nine mainland cities in the GBA, achieving the goal in August of the same year. Together with the University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital (HKU Shenzhen Hospital), eligible elderly individuals can use medical vouchers at a total of 21 service points in mainland cities within the GBA, allowing them more choices for medical treatment and saving them from the inconvenience of travel, thus bringing them a sense of happiness. As of the end of January 2026, over 32,200 eligible elderly individuals have used medical vouchers to pay for outpatient medical care services at institutions under the pilot program, involving 74,956 transactions with a total claim amount of approximately HK$79.56 million. Since the launch of the pilot program, the number of elderly individuals using medical vouchers at various institutions has steadily increased, with the main service categories being follow-up/surveillance of chronic diseases (53%) and preventive care (23%). Since the launch of the pilot program, operations at various pilot medical institutions have been smooth. The Department of Health has conducted inspections and implemented relevant surveillance measures at all current pilot medical institutions, with no abnormal reporting of medical voucher claims found. The expansion of the pilot program to cover all nine cities in the mainland GBA marks another milestone in policy innovation and cross-border medical cooperation. The pilot program is still in the early stages of operation, with some pilot medical institutions operating for less than six months. The government will continue to assess and monitor the operation and use of medical vouchers at pilot medical institutions and review the effectiveness of the pilot program before considering future arrangements. (2) Since 2024, the "cross-border health records" and "personal medical record folders" functions of the MediConnect mobile application have been gradually introduced at a total of 20 medical institutions, including HKU Shenzhen Hospital and institutions under the pilot program, to facilitate cross-border medical cooperation. The "cross-border health records" function allows MediConnect users to apply for access to electronic health records stored in MediConnect for the past three years and authorize medical staff at designated overseas medical institutions to view the records when the user seeks treatment, aiding in diagnosis and treatment. Additionally, users can use the "personal medical record folders" function to store medical records obtained during overseas treatment in their personal MediConnect accounts for centralized storage and use, including viewing by authorized healthcare institutions in follow-up care through MediConnect. Following the principle of self-carrying medical records, these two functions facilitate Hong Kong citizens to safely use electronic health records across borders through MediConnect, resulting in more consistent medical services. In December 2025, the beneficiary scope of the "cross-border health records" function was expanded from elderly individuals eligible to use medical vouchers to all MediConnect users in Hong Kong. In January 2026, the "personal medical record folders" function was upgraded to allow citizens to authorize three designated overseas medical institutions (i.e., HKU Shenzhen Hospital, Zhongshan Chan Sing Hei Chinese-Western Medicine Hospital, and Shenzhen Xin Feng Harmony Hospital) to upload high-resolution radiological examination reports and images that are difficult to upload independently to their personal MediConnect accounts. The response to the introduction of the cross-border functions has been positive. As of mid-February 2026, over 14,000 citizens have used the "cross-border health records" function, with over 16,000 applications made. Moreover, citizens have uploaded over 25,000 records through the "personal medical record folders" function, mainly consisting of examination reports, with approximately 45% coming from HKU Shenzhen Hospital and institutions under the pilot program. As for the upgraded feature of the "personal medical record folders" with high-resolution radiological images, over 2,000 applications have been received within three weeks. The SAR government will continue to communicate closely with relevant mainland departments and medical institutions to further deepen the interoperability of cross-border medical records through MediConnect, aiming to better support citizens' cross-border medical needs and enhance the quality and safety of cross-border medical services. Throughout the process, the SAR government will ensure that the arrangements comply with the laws and regulations of Hong Kong and the mainland, safeguard data security and patient privacy, and (3) Introduced on May 10, 2023, the "Support GBA Hospital Authority Patient Pilot Program" allows patients who have made appointments for follow-up consultations at HA-designated outpatient clinics (qualified patients) to choose to receive subsidized diagnostic services at designated collaborative medical institutions in the GBA, covering outpatient services provided by the HA, including anesthesia (pain management clinics only), cardiothoracic surgery, clinical oncology, otolaryngology, ophthalmology, gynecology, internal medicine, neurosurgery, obstetrics, orthopedic and trauma surgery, pediatrics, surgery, and family medicine clinics. The pilot program aims to provide more options for Hong Kong residents to receive HA services and is currently applicable at HKU Shenzhen Hospital. As of the end of January 2026, more than 5,900 eligible patients have participated, with over 25,000 visits. According to a patient survey conducted by HKU Shenzhen Hospital in November of last year, over 90% of respondents expressed satisfaction with the services. The SAR government and HA will review the effectiveness and coverage of the pilot program annually. When formulating cross-border medical measures, the SAR government not only considers the needs of Hong Kong citizens but also evaluates whether the policies will impact the social resources and lives of the GBA and the mainland as a whole. The Health Bureau is continuously deepening the reform of the medical and healthcare system to ensure that Hong Kong maintains high-quality medical services and efficient healthcare systems, with no intention to transfer the main responsibility for medical services to neighboring cities. The SAR government will continue to closely monitor the progress of various cross-border medical cooperation measures and explore feasible measures in accordance with the principle of complementary advantages and mutual benefit to better support the medical needs of Hong Kong citizens, including considering expanding the scope of cooperation with other mainland medical institutions in the GBA.