The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government announced today that Nansha Division of the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University in Nansha district in Guangzhou (FAH-NS) and Dongguan Tungwah Hospital in Dongguan (Tungwah Hospital) will implement the Elderly Health Care Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme from September 6.

Following this announcement, there will be nine service points in the Greater Bay Area where the Hong Kong Elderly Health Care Voucher (EHCV) can be used, marking the full implementation of the pilot scheme as set out in the 2023 Policy Address.

At FAH-NS, EHCVs are applicable for outpatient healthcare services provided by 14 departments, including the Department of Internal Medicine, Department of Surgery, Department of Gynecology, Department of Ophthalmology, Department of Otorhinolaryngology (Ear, Nose, Throat), Department of Stomatology (yet to commence operation), Department of Dermatology, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Department of Neurology, Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Nutrition, Health Management Center, and Department of Emergency Medicine.

Meanwhile at Tungwah Hospital, EHCVs will also be applicable to 14 outpatient departments, namely the Internal Medicine Department, Surgery Department, Orthopedics Department, Gynecology Department, Ophthalmology Department, Stomatology Department, Emergency Medicine Department, General Medicine Practice, Clinical Nutrition Department, Traditional Chinese Medicine Department, Physical Examination Department, Dermatology Department, Rehabilitation Department, and Clinical Psychology Department.

The Hong Kong SAR Government noted that the fees for the healthcare services provided by the two hospitals are denominated in renminbi. Hospital staff will make EHCV claims for users, and the EHCV amount deducted in Hong Kong dollars will be calculated according to a monthly updated voucher conversion factor under the EHCV Scheme.

It also issued a reminder that Hong Kong elderly people using EHCVs at any designated medical institution in the bay area should have registered with eHealth. Moreover, they cannot use EHCVs together with national medical insurance to pay for the same healthcare service encounter.

Separately, starting September 6, the new functions of “Cross-boundary Health Record” and “Personal Folder” in the eHealth mobile app will be extended to the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University and the Zhongshan Chen Xinghai Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese & Western Medicine.

Senior citizens who use EHCVs at these two hospitals can apply for their electronic health records stored in eHealth over the past three years through the “Cross-boundary Health Record” function in advance. Upon verification of their authorisation, a “File QR Code” and a “Password QR Code” will be sent over the eHealth app.

During their consultation, healthcare professionals can then access and browse the health records by scanning the two QR codes presented by the elderly patients in order to help formulate diagnoses and provide treatments.

Moreover, the “Personal Folder” function enables storage and browsing of medical-related records obtained during consultations in and outside Hong Kong.