The Hospital Authority today announced it has enhanced the public hospital mortuary charge by extending the free storage period from three days, as stated in the initial arrangement, to 28 days, following a review and prudent consideration of feedback from the public and stakeholders.

The authority noted that with an ageing population, the number of deaths in public hospitals has been steadily rising from approximately 32,000 in 2007 to over 41,000 in 2024, representing a 28% increase.

The number of hospital mortuary storage spaces has been significantly raised from 1,500 to approximately 3,360 during the same period, marking a 124% increase. The ratio of mortuary storage spaces to hospital beds has increased from 1:18 in 2007 to 1:9 in 2024, it added.

To facilitate funeral arrangements for the public, the authority has been processing death certificate applications as quickly as possible, with over 95% of death certificates that can be issued within three working days and more than 99% within seven working days.

Meanwhile, the Food & Environmental Hygiene Department pledged to provide cremation sessions within 15 days.

However, the average duration of storage of bodies in the authority’s mortuaries continues to rise, with approximately 10% of bodies stored for more than a month, and some even exceeding one year.

Due to the prolonged storage, the occupancy rate of the mortuaries frequently exceeds 100%, the authority noted, noting that eight out of 38 hospital mortuaries registered occupancy rates exceeding 100% between February and May in 2024.

During the service demand surge in 2025, 13 mortuaries recorded above 100% occupancy rates, it added.

Given the limited resources in public hospitals, the authority needs to effectively balance the allocation of resources between mortuaries which serve as temporary body storage facilities, and patient care services.

Emphasising that the introduction of a mortuary charge is not aimed at increasing revenue, the authority said the extension of the free storage period will give families more time to process death documentation, prepare funeral arrangements and book cremation sessions while reducing their financial burden.