The government has announced the lowering of age requirement for the Elderly Healthcare Scheme from 70 to 65, enabling more elders to benefit from the HKD 2000 per year subsidiary.
Elderly Health Care Voucher
From July 2017, any eligible persons holding a valid Hong Kong Identity Card or Certificate of Exemption may begin using the vouchers at any health care service providers with “Health Care Voucher” Scheme logo. These service providers now include registered optometrists (part 1), and eligible persons may use the voucher for purchasing eyeglasses after a Primary Eye Care Exam.
A Primary Eye Care Exam should include inquiring medical history, Refraction tests, Visual Function tests, Eye health tests, and an overall visual health diagnosis and professional consultations.
The risk of an eye disease developing increases as people age. Many eye diseases are closely related to age such as cataracts and age-related macular degeneration may begin to show symptoms.
Fortunately, the early symptoms of most common eye diseases can be detected with regular eye checkups. This essentially means, the older one is, the more important a regular eye checkup becomes.
A regular eye checkup serves more than merely detecting symptoms as it provides vital optical information so you can be prescribed the right corrective lenses to improve vision. It is also recommended for the elderly to wear lenses with UV and high energy blue light blocking functions.
Exposure to UV rays increases the risk of cataract and other eye disorders, and could cause accelerated ageing in the skin around the eyes. Signs of accelerated ageing in skin include dull skin, freckles, and wrinkly skin. Poor vision is not an inevitable part of aging, and proper protection could help maintain vision.
Eyecare information by Swisscoat Vision Centre
Address : G/F Yuen Yick Building, 27-29 Wellington Street, Central, Hong Kong
Appointment :+852 3579 4763
Website : www.swisscoat.com