The Hong Kong government plans to require private medical institutions, including private hospitals, to publish price lists and provide fee estimates. The proposed rules would also require a hospital to explain in writing if its final charge exceeded its estimate by more than 20%.
The estimates would cover more than 480 specified treatments and procedures, up from the 30 included in the current pilot. Hospitals would also have to publish fee statistics regularly.
The Hong Kong Private Hospitals Association supports greater fee transparency, its vice-chairman, Dr. Chan Woon Tong, Joseph, said. But he said some complex procedures involve variables that make a single fixed price unsuitable, including complications and changes in medicine or equipment costs.
Unexpected bleeding during an operation could require a blood transfusion and increase the bill. A price range, he argued, can give hospitals and doctors more flexibility when treatment or costs change.
He warned that hospitals would need to check records and charges and verify doctors’ estimates, multiplying the workload and requiring more staff. That would not necessarily mean higher prices.
A group of community organisations has proposed lowering the threshold for written explanations to 10%. He said a lower limit would not necessarily make estimates more accurate, given differences in procedures, doctors’ skills and the risks of complications.
He also suggested reviewing the arrangements after one to two years, including whether the information is useful to the public and whether it could be provided more clearly or effectively.