Hong Kong aims to slash 10% no-show rate for radiology services in fee proposal
Hospital Authority says proposed charges for MRI and CT scans will encourage residents to keep appointments
Hong Kong authorities want to bring a 10 per cent no-show rate for free radiology services down to zero under a proposal to make residents with non-urgent medical needs pay for certain scans.
But the Hospital Authority said on Friday that the proposed co-payment model for radiology services such as computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans would be affordable for patients, as the government would still shoulder the bulk of the cost.
Dr Michael Wong Lap-gate, director of quality and safety at the authority, said the government was currently fully subsidising radiology services in public hospitals and the rising number of cases had added pressure to the system.
“Our population is ageing and more youngsters have been suffering from chronic illnesses,” Wong said. “The pressure on the whole healthcare service is huge. The demand for radiology services is also increasing as more checks are needed for patients than before.”
He said the public system was only able to fulfil 87,000 of the 111,000 requests for MRI services in the 2023-24 financial year, while the provision of ultrasonography and CT scans also faced similar shortfalls.
The fee for a single MRI scan in a private clinic ranged from several thousand Hong Kong dollars to more than HK$10,000 (US$1,300), Wong said.