Bosses are worried they will be put under financial pressure if they have to contribute to mandatory insurance for their employees. The consultation paper on health reform did not say whether employers would be required to chip in to the personal health-care reserve scheme - a mixed model of mandatory savings and insurance - one of the six proposed options. Under this proposal, employees would contribute 3 to 5 per cent of their income to a medical savings account and part of it would be used on mandatory insurance. Secretary for Food and Welfare York Chow Yat-ngok said the government would leave it to the public to discuss whether employers should contribute to the savings. Louis Pong Wai-yan, chief executive of the Employers' Federation of Hong Kong, said employers feared they would have to make contributions to employees' accounts. 'It depends on the rates employers need to contribute, but I think small and medium-size enterprises will face more pressure in this regard.' Mr Pong said most of the federation's members provided medical schemes to employees, which enabled them to enjoy free or discounted services at private clinics. If the law required employers to make contributions, some might stop offering such schemes, he added. The chairman of the Federation of Hong Kong Industries, Clement Chen Cheng-jen, said employers would welcome commitments on providing medical schemes for employees, but the administration should ensure contributions would be carefully spent. He hoped the government would take into consideration those employers who provided medical schemes when deciding on the financing option. The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce described the current medical financing model as outdated and unsustainable, saying it welcomed the consultation as a step towards improving public services. Speaking at a meeting of the Legislative Council's health services panel yesterday, labour sector legislator Wong Kwok-hing asked if employers and the government would take part. 'Are employers and the government not contributing at all?' Fernando Cheung Chiu-hung, of the Civic Party, criticised the proposed financing options for shifting all the burden to employees. 'How can the government be so harsh to further require only workers to make contributions?' Executive councillor Bernard Chan, who represents the insurance sector, said regardless of which option was adopted, the middle class would be deeply affected. 'The point is under which financing option they will be better off.'
