Secretary for Health Prof Lo Chung-mau and a delegation called on the State Council Hong Kong & Macao Affairs Office (HKMAO) and the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) in Beijing today.
 
At the delegation’s meeting with State Council HKMAO Executive Deputy Director Zhou Ji this morning, Prof Lo introduced to Mr Zhou the latest developments of various healthcare reform initiatives in Hong Kong, including the initial achievements in the area of health and medical innovation.
 
Prof Lo pointed out that the 20th CPC Central Committee’s Third Plenary Session adopted the Resolution of the CPC Central Committee on Further Deepening Reform Comprehensively to Advance Chinese Modernization, adding that deepening the medical and health system reform was identified as one of the key tasks.
 
He stressed that it is essential for Hong Kong to press ahead with reform and innovation in the healthcare system to cater for the mounting service demand of society posed by an ageing population.
 
“The Health Bureau will stay committed to implementing the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee and reform the healthcare system in a progressive manner.”
 
At the same time, Prof Lo made it clear that the bureau will give full play to Hong Kong’s medical strengths and complement the advantages of other cities in the Greater Bay Area to vigorously develop new quality productive forces in biomedicine according to local conditions.
 
The ultimate aim, he noted, is to develop Hong Kong into an international health and medical innovation hub.
 
Additionally, he emphasised that the bureau will also make breakthroughs and changes through an innovative mindset, so as to build a “Healthy Hong Kong” for integration into the nation’s “Healthy China” strategy.
 
Prof Lo and the delegation then met NMPA Deputy Commissioner Zhao Junning to exchange views on fostering closer collaboration between the Mainland and Hong Kong in key areas such as the regulatory and approval of drugs and medical devices, cross-boundary clinical trials, and real-world data research.
 
The health secretary highlighted the efforts to develop Hong Kong into an international health and medical innovation hub, and establish an authority that registers drugs and medical devices under the primary evaluation approach in the long run.
 
The delegation will return to Hong Kong tonight.