Press Release - July 24, 2001
The use of traditional medicines has become more popular in many countries throughout the world, therefore, there is a need to regulate in order to protect the health of consumers.

"Hong Kong has made inroads by establishing a sound regulatory framework to regulate the use of Chinese medicines and to register the traditional Chinese medicine practitioners, which will in turn promote the future development of Chinese medicine in Hong Kong," said Dr. Margaret Chan, Director of Health of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government.

The Chinese Medicine Ordinance was enacted in July 1999 and September 1999 saw the establishment of the Chinese Medicine Council of Hong Kong, which is an independent statutory body responsible for devising and implementing regulatory measures.

Speaking in Toronto today (July 24) after attending two conferences organised by the World Health Organisation (WHO) held in Ottawa last week, Dr. Chan emphasized the importance of a regulatory regime for traditional and herbal medicine.

Dr. Chan was the chair of the "Quality Control of Finished Herbal Products" conference while Dr. Leung Ting-hung, Assistant Director, was co-chair of the "WHO Monographs on Medicinal Plants" conference which were attended by more than 60 experts from 25 countries.

In devising a long term strategy for promoting the proper use of traditional Chinese medicine and maintaining the professional standard of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners in Hong Kong, Dr. Chan said it was geared towards regulation; education and training; research; services; industry development; information networking; and intellectual property protection.

"Hong Kong is a fore-runner in developing and implementing such regulatory work and will continue to develop Chinese medicine as an integral part of the health care system," Dr. Chan said.

While in Toronto, Dr. Chan met with executives of the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council (HPRAC) to exchange experience on the latest development of the regulatory regime in Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture in Canada, and spoke to members of the Chinese Canadian Medical Society (Ontario) and the Journal Club of Chinatown Physician at a dinner.

For further information please contact Chief Information Officer, Jean Chan at 416-924-5544 / [email protected] or Senior Information Officer, Elison Chu, [email protected].