The Medical Centre of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), a teaching hospital owned by the university, announced a two-phase price adjustment plan on Monday, with the first phase, which started on Saturday, involving price reductions for over 1,000 medical services spanning areas like urology and ophthalmology.

The second phase, to be launched in December, will include specialties such as breast surgery and gynecology, said the center’s management on Monday.

The fare adjustments come at a time close to the public hospitals’ fee reforms, effective Jan 1, which include new fare schedules for services like inpatient care, outpatient visits, and day hospital treatments.

READ MORE: CUHK Medical Centre deserves five more years

During a media briefing on Monday afternoon, the management of CUHK Medical Centre said the first-phase price adjustment involves a review of 1,358 high-usage services, representing around a quarter of the hospital's over 5,000 fee-charging services. Out of these, prices for 1,011 services, including urology, ophthalmology, endoscopy, radiology, and pathology services, will be reduced by varying percentages, from 2 percent to double digits.

Among the reductions, prices for services like gastroscopy and various vaccines, including Herpes Zoster, HPV (9-in-1), and respiratory syncytial virus vaccines, will drop.

Surcharges for off-hours staff arrangements will be lowered. For example, using the operating room before 10 pm will now only incur a basic fee aligned with market norms, medical center management said, adding that fees for intensive care or critical care units have also been lowered.

During the first phrase of the price adjustments, 13 services will see price increases, fees for 324 services will remain unchanged, and the pricing structure for 10 services will be modified.

Details of the second-phase adjustments, expected to include specialties like breast surgery, gynecology, orthopedics, and chemotherapy services, will be revealed in December.

Chung Kin-lai, chief executive officer of CUHK Medical Centre, said that since assuming office in July, he has received public feedback regarding the hospital, including concerns about pricing disparities with the market and unexpected billing items.

This pricing adjustment aims to address these concerns and uphold social responsibility through transparent and affordable fee structures. Chung said that apart from price adjustments, the hospital will actively review bills to ensure fairness. He said he is also committed to personally addressing all pricing-related complaints.

READ MORE: First Greater Bay Area medical data space launched

Mandy Ma Hoi-wan, chief financial officer-designate of the hospital, said the price adjustments follow thorough information gathering and data analysis, including comprehensive cost evaluations, market price comparisons, and feedback from stakeholders, medical professionals, and the public.

She stressed that service quality would not be sacrificed, adding that the hospital has introduced more flexible treatment options in ophthalmology and endoscopy services.

The hospital will monitor the performance of the two price adjustment phases and continue to assess price adjustments in the future, Ma added.

Contact the writer at amberwu@chinadailyhk.com