Govt strives to reduce smoking rate to 7.8 pc by 2025. says health chief

The Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau said the government is still working towards the target of reducing the smoking rate to 7.8 percent next year.

His comments came during a radio program, saying that authorities have no plans to revise the goal to limit the smoking rate to 7.8 percent and are confident it can be achieved.

The health minister added that the government is committed to meeting the World Health Organization's stipulation that the tobacco tax accounts for 75 percent of the retail price of a pack of cigarettes.

Lo mentioned that after the pandemic and the lifting of relevant measures, last year was expected to be a challenging year for tobacco control, and he was worried that Hong Kong's smoking population would rebound.

However, preliminary data showed that after the increase in tobacco taxes, the smoking rate declined. 

He stated that increasing taxes is only one of the measures for tobacco control. Others include strengthening the identification of illicit cigarettes and duty-paid cigarette packages, changing the penalties for illicit cigarette sales, and studying and expanding the scope of the smoking ban.

Lo said the government conducted a public consultation on tobacco control policies last year. The analysis has been completed, and the results will be announced soon.

In addition, the health chief mentioned that the charges for public medical services, not limited to emergency room charges, are being reviewed.

He hopes that precious resources will be used appropriately and concentrated on helping low-income disadvantaged groups, as well as those with long-term illnesses.

He pointed out that various factors will be considered when revising the fee for different medical services, and the goal is to propose a preliminary plan this year.