Lo Chung-mau says Hainan offers lessons for Hong Kong
Bastillepost · 2 SOURCESabout 2 hours ago2 MIN
Summary
Health Secretary Lo Chung-mau has started an official visit to Hainan, meeting local health authorities and visiting the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone. He said Hainan has built up substantial experience in clinical approval for drugs and medical devices, as well as cross-border healthcare development, and that Hong Kong can learn from those practices.
Key Points
- Lo led a delegation to Hainan and held meetings with local healthcare officials during the visit.
- The delegation also toured the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone to examine local medical industry development on the ground.
- Lo said Hong Kong is comprehensively upgrading regulation of drugs and medical devices while promoting standardisation of clinical data across the Greater Bay Area.
- He said the aim is to speed up registration and market launch of innovative drugs and medical devices in Hong Kong, the mainland and international markets.
- On Chinese medicine, Lo said the government last year released its first Chinese Medicine Development Blueprint and is advancing the Hong Kong Chinese Medicine Hospital and the permanent building of the Government Chinese Medicines Testing Institute.
Why It Matters
For Hong Kong, the visit points to possible policy borrowing in drug and device approval and in cross-border healthcare services as the city seeks to raise its regulatory capacity and shorten the path for innovative products to reach market. It also ties Hong Kong’s healthcare planning more closely to regional cooperation with Hainan and the wider national development agenda for Chinese medicine.