Government to extend coverage of Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme at University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital
******************************************************************************************
The Health Bureau announced today (March 31) that, starting from April 17, eligible Hong Kong elderly can use the Elderly Health Care Voucher (EHCV) to pay for the fees of outpatient healthcare services at the Huawei Li Zhi Yuan Community Health Center (Huawei CHC) of the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital (HKU-SZH). The Huawei CHC is an offsite medical institution set up by the HKU-SZH. The new arrangement will enable Hong Kong elderly residing in Shenzhen to better utilise local outpatient services.
To provide convenience to the eligible Hong Kong elderly residing in Shenzhen and nearby areas, the Government launched the HKU-SZH pilot scheme in 2015, which was later regularised in June 2019. Under the scheme, the elderly can use the EHCV to pay for the fees of designated outpatient healthcare services at the HKU-SZH, including preventive care, treatments and rehabilitation services.
Starting from April 17, the scheme for the use of EHCV at the HKU-SZH will be further extended to cover the Huawei CHC set up by the hospital, thereby offering eligible Hong Kong elderly residing in Shenzhen an additional service point where they can use the EHCV to obtain relevant medical services.
The EHCVs are issued and for use on an electronic platform. Therefore, eligible elderly need not pre-register, collect or bring along the EHCV. They only need to visit the Huawei CHC in person and will be able to use the EHCV to settle the fees of outpatient services they received at the designated clinics/departments/health centre upon presentation of a valid Hong Kong Identity Card or Certificate of Exemption. The Huawei CHC will help relevant elderly make a claim and instantly update the user’s record in his/her EHCV account. A printed record showing the voucher balance will also be provided for retention by the elderly. A spokesperson for the Health Bureau reminded that relevant arrangements are not applicable to inpatient services, pre-paid healthcare services and day surgery procedures. The EHCV cannot be used for solely purchasing products, medicine, medical equipment and products, nor can it be redeemed for cash.
Under the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme (EHVS), individuals aged 65 or above and possessing a valid Hong Kong Identity Card or Certificate of Exemption issued by the Immigration Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government will receive an annual EHCV amount of HK$2,000 to pay for the service fees charged by private primary healthcare service providers participating in the scheme. The unspent EHCV amount of the year can be carried forward to the following years, with the accumulation limit set at HK$8,000.
To tie in with the HKSAR Government’s policy objective of promoting primary healthcare, the EHVS will continue to support the healthcare needs of the elderly and assist the elderly in enhancing their awareness of disease prevention and self-management of health.
For more details of the EHVS, members of the public may visit the website of the scheme: www.hcv.gov.hk, or call the hotline at (852) 2838 2311. As for details of the EHVS at the HKU-SZH, they may visit the website of the HKU-SZH: www.hku-szh.org.