Programme Introduction

The General Outpatient Clinic Public-Private Partnership Programme (GOPC PPP) was launched by the Hospital Authority (HA) in mid-2014 in three pilot districts namely Kwun Tong, Wong Tai Sin and Tuen Mun with aims to provide choice to patients for receiving primary care services from the private sector, enhance patient access to primary care services, promote family doctor concept, help the HA manage demand for general outpatient service and foster the development of the territory-wide Electronic Health Record Sharing System (eHRSS).

Clinically stable patients having hypertension and/ or diabetes mellitus (with or without hyperlipidemia) currently taken care of by HA general outpatient clinics (GOPC), will be invited for voluntary participation. All private doctors practising in Relevant Districts are welcome to participate in this Programme.

Each participating patient will receive up to 10 subsidised visits per year, including medical consultations covering both chronic and episodic illnesses; drugs for treating their chronic conditions and episodic illnesses to be received directly from private doctors at their clinics; and investigation services provided by HA as specified through private doctors’ referral.

Under the Programme, participating patients only need to pay the HA GOPC fee of $50 (as per Gazette) for each consultation. Patients who are eligible for applicable waivers will enjoy the same fee waiver arrangements as for the HA’s services when they attends the private doctor for scope under the Programme. Under mutual agreement, individual patients may receive further services and treatment at their own expenses. Those who have participated in the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme can meet such additional charges from their Health Care Voucher accounts.

For service provision, participating private doctors may receive a maximum total payment of $3,408 per year (on a reimbursement basis), covering a maximum of 10 consultations, including the HA GOPC fee of $50 to be paid by the patients to the private doctors direct after each consultation. For patients eligible to enjoy the same fee waiver arrangements as for the HA services, the HA will bear the GOPC fee.

Initial implementation of the Programme has generally been smooth. The HA will continue to monitor closely the implementation of the Programme and has completed an interim review on the Programme in the first quarter of 2016. Taking into account the initial positive feedback from the medical professional bodies, patients, private doctors, and staff as well as the strong community call, the Programme will be rolled out to 18 districts in three years, starting from 2016/17. The roll-out plan is outlined as follows:

2016/17: Eastern, Southern, Wan Chai, Kowloon City, Sham Shui Po, Kwai Tsing, Sai Kung, Sha Tin, Yuen Long
2017/18: Central and Western, Islands, Tai Po, Tsuen Wan
2018/19: Yau Tsim Mong, North

The Programme is now covering all 18 districts of Hong Kong

To help tackle the winter surge in 2019-20, HA will subsidise each Programme patient with two additional subsidised visit quotas (additional quotas) during the winter surge period from 2 December 2019 to 30 April 2020 (the Period). The additional quotas will apply to the first two visits made by the patients within the Period, where patients can attend PSP clinic for consultations on follow up of the designated chronic illnesses and/or on episodic illnesses (chronic or acute) without deducting their 10 annual quotas. Once the patients have consumed the two additional quotas or upon the expiry of the Period, the visits made by the patients will be counted towards the annual quotas. Anti-viral drug Tamiflu will also be included as add-on medication under the Programme for prescription to clinically indicated patients during the subsidised visits made in the Period. Each Programme patient will be subsidised with up to one course of Tamiflu during the Period, without paying extra charges apart the your co-payment. HA will also ride on the eHRSS to communicate with patients on the additional quotas and to disseminate health promotion messages.