Hong Kong consumer watchdog finds not all health screening packages involve doctors and vary in price and tests offered
- Residents advised to consult family doctors and carefully weigh options before paying for health screening packages
- Consumer Council studies 17 basic health check packages from 12 private hospitals and 16 such plans from 14 private medical institutions
A third of the 33 health screening packages examined by Hong Kong’s consumer watchdog do not involve doctors in diagnosis and consultation, raising concerns about how customers would be guided to take appropriate follow-up action.
“A lower price or more tests are not necessarily better, as different tests may pose risks or side effects,” Kyrus Siu King-wai, the council’s convenor of the advisory group on digital economy and IT, told a press briefing.
“It is best to have a doctor recommend an appropriate plan for the individual’s health condition. Consumers should also carefully compare the differences and prices of various plans before making a decision.”
The watchdog, from February to March this year, collected data on prices and examinations of 17 basic health check packages from 12 private hospitals or their affiliated centres and 16 such plans from 14 private medical groups.
The survey looked at eight basic items commonly found in health check plans, including: health and weight measurements, body mass index, blood pressure, pulse or heart rate; waist measurement; physical examination; and visual acuity.
The others were: colour vision test; cardiopulmonary and abdominal examinations; health assessment; and consultation by medical professionals.
Package prices ranged from HK$820 (US$104) to HK$8,310. But the cheapest annual medical check-up, offered by Kinetics Medical & Health Group, only gave limited details, such as total cholesterol level, the watchdog found.
The council said if consumers wanted to know more about their high-density lipoprotein, or “good” cholesterol, and their triglyceride-glucose level, they might have to pay for additional tests.
Despite a drop in consumer complaints about health checks from 87 cases in 2020 to 56 last year, the council expressed concern over some medical centres’ advertising strategies.
It said 18 health check-up plans, offered by 15 organisations, were advertised with an original price and a discounted price, creating a promotional effect and potentially influencing consumers’ decisions.
Consumers made 18 complaints about health screening packages between January and April this year, compared to 20 over the same period last year.
The council also found 15 out of 16 packages offered by the 14 private medical institutions provided fewer than four of the eight basic items, with at least eight plans offering only one.
Doctors were not involved in the diagnosis process of 10 of the 33 studied packages, and five did not include a physician’s explanation of the report.
Siu said the absence of doctors might lead consumers to mistakenly believe that they were suffering from a disease or needed follow-up examinations in the event of a “false positive” or “false negative” misdiagnosis.
“It is crucial for the medical report to be explained by a doctor,” he said. “In case of any problems, the doctor can advise the consumer on appropriate follow-up action.”
