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To fill this gap, we first recommended that the Government consider a subsidy scheme for
population screening and management of chronic diseases in our 2016 report An Investment
for the Celebration of Aging. Taking into account the Government’s more recent efforts in
promoting PHC and drawing reference from international strategic purchasing practices, we
further develop the recommendation to propose a Chronic Disease Screening
Voucher and Management Scheme (CDSVMS, addressed as “Scheme”
thereafter) targeted at the population aged 45 years and above. Targeted
conditions for screening include Hong Kong’s three most prevalent chronic diseases, namely
diabetes (DM), hypertension and hyperlipidaemia (collectively termed “HDH”). Proposals of
chronic disease management care pathways will also be explored.

We conducted multiple studies to assess the potential of applying strategic purchasing
to Hong Kong’s health system and the feasibility of the Scheme. We interviewed
key stakeholders, including healthcare service providers, patient group representatives
and policymakers to collect their views (Chapter 4.1). We also garnered citizens’ perspectives
by conducting a population-based telephone survey (Chapter 4.2). Furthermore, we
conducted a simplified Budget Impact Analysis (BIA) on the Scheme as an illustration
of the potential impact that implementing strategic purchasing could have on healthcare
spending in Hong Kong (Chapter 4.3). Work presented in this chapter was completed with
support from the Public Policy Research Funding Scheme of the Policy Innovation and Co-
ordination Office (PICO) in the HKSAR Government (Project number: 2020.A4.068.20B).

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