Department of Health (Hong Kong)

Hong Kong's Department of Health is responsible for healthcare policies and the provision of basic healthcare services and established in 1939. The public hospitals are managed by the department's Hospital Authority. The department reports to the Food and Health Bureau.
The department is headed by the Director of Health, a position currently held by Dr Hon Yee Chan.
History.
In the past, health and medical issues (including hospital management) fell under the purview of the Medical and Health Department. This changed with reforms to Hong Kong's healthcare system in the late 1980s. In October 1987, Governor David Wilson officially announced the government's intention to establish a new, semi-independent Hospital Authority, which would be administered by a new Hospital Services Department (HSD). In April 1989, the Medical and Health Department was split into the Department of Health and the Hospital Services Department. The Hospital Authority was set up in 1990.
In March 2021, the Department of Health terminated a vaccination agreement with a private clinic, after its doctor claimed that the Sinovac vaccine had a bad reputation and that he would not take it himself.
Structure.
The Department of Health provides its broad range and diverse services to Hongkongers through different divisions, offices, and centres. The following is a list of them:
Drug registration in Hong Kong.
Under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance (Chapter 138), the Department of Health's Drug Office is responsible for drug registration in Hong Kong. All drugs sold in Hong Kong are required to be registered with a number, which consists of the prefix 'HK' followed by five digits (e.g. HK-05628).