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Hong Kong retiree weighs Shenzhen surgery options amid rising costs
He was scheduled to pay HK$210,000 for surgery in Hong Kong, but a Shenzhen option priced testing at about HK$300 and the inpatient procedure at about HK$20,000.
Hong Kong retiree Philip Kong said he realized the city’s healthcare system needed a “wake-up call” after learning that getting treatment for an enlarged prostate in neighboring Shenzhen could substantially reduce his medical bill, according to SCMP Economy.
Kong, 75, had been diagnosed earlier this year and was set to pay HK$210,000, about US$26,780, for a scheduled prostate surgery at Hong Kong Sanatorium and Hospital, until a family friend, a urologist, suggested an alternative at the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital.
The University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital option included a full examination, with blood and urine tests, for about HK$300, and about HK$20,000 for the standard inpatient procedure. Kong ultimately chose not the largest discount, instead buying a “deluxe” HK$60,000 package that included a private room with a sea view, and said the operation would be performed by three professor-grade specialists.
The article notes Kong is enrolled in Hong Kong’s Voluntary Health Insurance Scheme, but the episode still left him shaken.