The Government will enhance the medical fee waiver mechanism from April 1 to tie in with the revised public healthcare fee structure, says the Secretary for Health, Welfare & Food.

Speaking on the Legco Panel on Health Services this morning, Dr Yeoh Eng-kiong  said the aim was to ensure that needy citizens would not be denied adequate public medical care due to lack of means.

He stressed that, even at the revised fee level, the Government subsidy still represents 96% of the full costs.

That is among the world's highest medical subsidy levels, he noted. 

After the fee revamp, Comprehensive Social Security Assistance recipients will continue to be exempt from paying medical expenses in public hospitals.

Three other vulnerable groups - low-income earners, the chronically ill and elderly patients who have little income or assets - also benefit from the enhanced mechanism.

"Given the finite resources, public funds should be channelled to assist lower income groups and to services which carry major financial risks to patients," Dr Yeoh said.

Eligibility & assessment criteria

The Government will consider applications from patients whose monthly household income does not exceed the average monthly CSSA payment applicable to their household size. (At present it is about the level of 50% of the Median Monthly Domestic Household Income.) They must also pass the asset-limit test.

Patients whose monthly household income is between 50% and 75% of the MMDHI applicable to their household size and pass the asset-limit test will also be eligible.

Example of MMDHI:

Household Size   1             2

Median MMDHI   $6,000    $12,700

75% of MMDHI   $4,500    $9,525

50% of MMDHI   $3,000    $6,350

Example of asset limit:

Household Size                    1               2

Asset Limit                          $30,000     $60,000

(no elderly member) 

Asset Limit                          $80,000     $110,000

(with 1 elderly member) 

Asset Limit                          -                $160,000

(with 2 elderly members) 

Responding to LegCo members' criticisms that there was room to further relax the edlerly's asset limit, Dr Yeoh said the Government would review the matter after the enhanced mechanism takes effect.

Enhanced Medical Social Workers operations:

The Government will also enhance the transparency and objectivity of the Medical Social Workers waiver mechanism.

Under the system, MSWs will consider the applications for waiving medical fees - whether a waiver is one-off or valid for a defined period of time, and whether it is full or partial - on a case-by-case basis.

Fees for in-patient, specialist out-patient, general out-patient, dressings and injections, and private services in public clinics and hospitals will be raised from April 1.