According to the South China Morning Post, the scheme will provide about 40,000 dental service places for disadvantaged groups each year, about double the number of places previously provided by Hong Kong’s 11 government clinics.
Each patient who registers will be allocated three quota places, one for each tooth treated, and an administrative fee of HK$50 (about €5.61*) will be required without exemptions.
Eligible Hong Kong residents must be recipients of certain social welfare payments or medical fee exemptions and have joined the electronic health record sharing system. Individuals can apply for the scheme twice a year, and participating clinics must provide services within one month of registration.
Dr. Tse Mei-yin, dental service consultant at the Hong Kong Department of Health, told the media that Hong Kong aims to improve the way dental care is provided to disadvantaged groups.
According to the newspaper, residents have previously complained about the limited service capacity of government dental clinics and the lack of non-emergency care, resulting in insufficient services such as routine check-ups and tooth restorations.
Dr. Lee Siu-man, consultant and dentist at the Department of Health, pointed out that residents would not find the administrative costs unbearable. “Our real goal is to encourage people to take good care of their teeth and keep them as long as possible, rather than just consider extraction as an option,” she said.
The Department of Health also announced that it would increase the number of service places in public dental clinics from June 1, with the number of available places increasing from 24,000 to 26,000.
The developments are part of China’s ongoing dental reforms, as policymakers have been working to reduce the cost of non-essential treatments to improve the quality of life of the elderly population and seek to attract foreign dentists to work in China.
Hong Kong’s elderly population is increasing rapidly. According to a report by the Office of the Government Economist, the number of residents aged 65 and above will increase from 1.97 million in 2028 to 2.44 million in 2038, accounting for 31.9% of the total population.
Related topics:
