HK Policy Address 2024: Hong Kong’s third medical school to be built in Northern Metropolis
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong is set to have a third medical school with the government reserving a site at the upcoming 30,000-hectare Northern Metropolis.
On Wednesday, Chief Executive John Lee said during his third Policy Address that the government would set up a task force and invite local universities interested in the idea to submit proposals.
A site in Ngau Tam Mei, a suburban area of Yuen Long also known as Yau Tam Mei, would be set aside for the new medical school campus as well as an integrated hospital for teaching and research, Lee said.
Government sources on Wednesday told reporters that the task force would include government representatives from relevant departments and non-official professionals. The list of members would be announced shortly.
Sources said the task force would be expected to complete the review of university proposals by the middle of next year, but a decision may be made later than that.
The huge Northern Metropolis housing and business hub along the city’s border with mainland China will cost more than HK$224 billion, the government estimated in May.
Hospital and campus
Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau first indicated in August that the government was actively considering the possibility of a third medical school in the city, with the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) submitted a proposal expressing interest, according to local media reports.
But sources on Wednesday said the plan had not yet been opened for submissions, meaning HKUST may have to submit a proposal again.
Sources also said a portion of the Ngau Tam Mei site was already reserved for building a hospital when the Northern Metropolis plan was first proposed in 2021 by then-chief executive Carrie Lam.
Detailed plans for Ngau Tam Mei will be unveiled this year, sources said, adding that the hospital would sit next to the new medical school, which would form part of a university town that would be expanded from 60 to 80 hectares.
Separately, Lee said during his Policy Address that the government was “exploring” legislation for private healthcare price transparency “to enhance service efficiency and address the issue of medical inflation.”
The healthcare sector would be consulted next year, he said.
The government will also introduce a bill next year on bringing in qualified, supplementary medical professionals who have not been trained locally, such as medical laboratory technologists and physiotherapists, Lee said.
Hong Kong had earlier passed legislation to import non-locally trained doctors and nurses amid a shortage of medical professionals.
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