Press Releases
Transcript of media session by SHWF
Following is the transcript (English portion) of a media session by the
Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr York Chow, after officiating at the
opening ceremony of Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Yu Mak Yuen Integrated Service
Centre today (March 11):
Reporter: Are you concerned with the leadership change that affects your job?
Would you be able to implement your policies?
Dr Chow: My priority is to ensure that we have a stable and also a continuity of
my work at the moment until we are sure about the new leadership. I have to
respect the new leadership if he or she wants to have his own secretaries and so
on. I need to respect his wish.
Reporter: Can I ask you about the H3N2 virus, the California flu, do we have
enough vaccines?
Dr Chow: Yes. The existing vaccines can cover to a certain extent the California
strain of influenza. I don't think we need to worry about the pandemic of the
influenza according to the current strain. What we are concerned is that the
avian flu, which is very different from the influenza we are facing.
Reporter: Even if you are kept on by Mr Donald Tsang as health minister
(secretary), are you concerned? Because Mr Donald Tsang has never mentioned
anything about health, how committed do you think he will be towards health
issues?
Dr Chow: First of all, I don't think you can assume that what you are saying
will be the fact until it happens. I believe that any Chief Executive of Hong
Kong SAR would have grave concerns about the health system in Hong Kong, the
need to reform our health care models and also in finding a way of health care
financing in the future. I don't think what we are doing now would be very much
affected even if there is a change in leadership.
Reporter: Are you going ahead with raising fees and charges?
Dr Chow: We are going ahead with the investigation and also the analysis of fee
adjustments of public hospitals.
(Please
also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript)
Ends/Friday, March 11, 2005
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