MR CHAN KIN-POR (in Cantonese): President, I move that the motion, as printed on the Agenda, be passed.
My motion today aims to urge the Government to draw important lessons from the combat against the epidemic this time around. As long as people pay attention to hygiene and lead a healthy lifestyle, their chances of contracting illnesses can be greatly reduced. Therefore, I urge the Government to promote a health policy in full steam. That way, it can cope with the challenges presented by population ageing at a lower economic cost and enable people to live a longer and healthier life in the future.
Hong Kong is facing the problem of population ageing. According to a projection made by the Census and Statistics Department, the number of people aged 65 above in Hong Kong will rise from the existing 1.37 million to 2.7 million in 2051, an increase of nearly 100%. By that time, demands for healthcare and social welfare services will definitely soar. On the other hand, healthcare expenditure has seen a year-on-year increase over recent years. In 2017-2018, healthcare expenditure stood at around $70 billion, and it has risen to $115 billion in this financial year. Within a short span of five years, healthcare expenditure has already increased by 65%.
In order to cope with future needs, the Government launched the first 10-year Hospital Development Plan (“the 10-year Plan”) in 2016 and dedicated $200 billion to increasing the numbers of hospital beds and operating theatres. At present, the Government is preparing for a second 10-year Plan with a budget estimate of as much as $270 billion. Foreseeably, the Government may have to launch a few more 10-year Plans when an ageing society comes into being in order to meet social needs. By that time, healthcare expenditure will definitely surge, and this will exert tremendous pressure on the finances of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
Population ageing aside, the pandemic outbreak of contagious diseases as a result of the failure to take forward public health-related tasks satisfactorily will likewise impose enormous pressure on the healthcare system. Members may remember how public hospitals were overcrowded with patients during the influenza outbreak at the beginning of 2019 in Hong Kong. Within three months, totally 356 people died, and this number is even higher than the number of deaths from the novel coronavirus in Hong Kong thus far. At the time, healthcare personnel were overwhelmed and exhausted, and their immense pressure had driven them to the verge of a mental breakdown. In order to relieve the pressure on the healthcare system, Financial Secretary Paul CHAN proposed in his Budget of that year to allocate dedicated funding to support healthcare personnel. This included an allocation of $700 million to provide additional allowances and recruit more manpower, alongside the allocation of an additional $5 billion for procuring medical equipment.
The novel coronavirus outbreak this time around is a huge disaster to mankind. But the experience and bitter lesson this time have likewise served indirectly as a large-scale experiment. According to the figures of the Hospital Authority, some 11 000 people were hospitalized for treatment due to influenza in 2018 and 2019 each year. But during the epidemic in 2020, the number plummeted to around 2 900, a decrease of 75%. Similarly, the number of influenza cases reported by private medical clinics also dropped significantly by 40% to 50%. What has been done to prevent the novel coronavirus has resulted in the prevention of influenza as well.
Of course, after the epidemic has subsided, people may not be as vigorous as before in epidemic prevention. But the Government can develop a health education policy to motivate people to pay attention to personal and public health, and to encourage people to wash their hands more frequently, wear a mask if they are ill, do more exercise, participate more in healthy outdoor activities and undergo physical check-ups more often. I believe all this can effectively reduce the chance of contracting illnesses. Actually, the massive influenza outbreak in each of the recent years in Hong Kong not only has led to death cases, it has also directly consumed substantial medical resources. The outbreak of influenza is possibly ascribable to a low hygiene awareness among people. With the experience in preventing the epidemic this time around, I believe that as long as Hong Kong can sustain the promotion of a hygiene awareness, the outbreak of influenza or other contagious diseases can definitely be reduced significantly.
Overseas studies have shown that healthcare expenditure can be effectively reduced by committing resources to healthy activities for people. As a study conducted by Harvard University discovered, if large enterprises launch wellness programmes for their staff, the medical cost incurred by their staff will fall by US$3.27 for every US dollar injected into such programmes, and absenteeism costs will likewise fall by US$2.73. Besides, the United States Government has introduced a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”) to provide food purchase subsidies to 20.5 million families. A study conducted in 2017 found that the annual expenditure on medical and healthcare incurred by SNAP participants was on average US$1,400 lower than that of non-SNAP participants. As indicated by the relevant studies, investing in health promotion programmes can significantly reduce healthcare expenditure. Even though the studies concerned were conducted in the United States, I think their findings are applicable worldwide.
If we do a computation for the second 10-year Plan based on the research findings of Harvard University that US$3.27 in medical costs can be saved for every US dollar invested, then we can see that perhaps the Government’s spending of $82.5 billion for promoting wellness programmes can already obviate the need for committing $270 billion to the entire plan, and it may dispense with the need to construct so many hospitals. But of course, the reality is not as simple as this. I am merely making a comparison, so that Members can understand clearly the powerful effects that can be produced by promoting a health policy.
As a matter of fact, many people have realized or understood the importance of health after this epidemic. As discovered by a survey conducted late last year, 83% of the respondents considered health to be more important than wealth. This explains why more and more people have developed a liking for activities that are beneficial to their physical and mental health over the past year, such as going on hiking and outings to the countryside. I believe that if the Government begins to promote a healthy lifestyle now, it will obtain the support of many people.
Apart from reducing public expenditure, the health policy I talk about also carries a more important and meaningful objective of fostering physical fitness among Hong Kong people. Actually, the life expectancy of Hong Kong people is among the longest in the world. But if they are plagued by various illnesses during their long life, then a long life can instead be a living hell and torture to them. Therefore, I think that a long life is enjoyable only with good health. If people are healthy, they need not spend any money seeing a doctor, and their wallets will also be healthy.
Recently, the Government launched the Territory-wide Physical Fitness Survey for the Community. It is the third time that the Government has conducted such a survey, and the purpose is to set up a database on the physical fitness of Hong Kong people and examine the relationship between people’s exercise patterns and their physical fitness, so as to facilitate the Government’s formulation of measures for enhancing people’s health. I fully support the survey, and I hope that the Government can conduct such surveys on a permanent basis because the data so collated are very important, in the sense that they can enable the Government to know the actual situation. The Government should formulate appropriate measures based on the needs of various age groups, so as to motivate people to do more exercise.
Besides, the Government should provide more suitable sports facilities and venues. The Government has done a good job in recent years, in the sense that in new development areas, in particular, it has provided a relatively sufficient number of sports centres and sports grounds. The Budget of this year has even earmarked some $300 million for the implementation of a five-year plan for upgrading football pitches. But in order to promote a health policy and encourage people to do more exercise, it is indeed necessary to provide more venues and facilities. In the particular case of urban areas, if it is impossible to construct sizeable sports venues or centres, then the Government may consider the idea of setting up government-run fitness centres, so as to encourage people to take part in body-building exercise. At the same time, the recent years have gradually seen the setting up of fitness rooms in schools for students. I hope the Government can allocate resources for all secondary schools in Hong Kong, so that they can set up fitness rooms. That way, it may cultivate a good habit among students and inculcate a correct awareness of the need for frequent exercise.
President, a health policy is extensive in scope, and I may be unable to bring up many other issues today. I hope the Government can consider my idea seriously and put it into practice. The reason is that as people are accustomed to epidemic prevention, it is now the best timing to promote a health policy for all, and this must begin with children. If the authorities succeed in cultivating a mentality of frequent exercise and a healthy life culture among all people, everybody will become healthy and happy. If we can solve the housing problem at the same time, the Government’s popularity will certainly reach a record high. Therefore, regardless of who assumes office as the Chief Executive, this matter is worthy of his or her consideration.
Thank you, President.