Severely ill Hongkongers may have public hospital fees capped: health minister

Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau said authorities were also considering offering partial refunds instead of full repayments during busy holiday periods for non-urgent patients who registered at public accident and emergency (A&E) departments but opted to leave before seeing a doctor.

Looking back at his work over the past two years, the minister said the Hospital Authority was focused on four areas: helping people who were lower down on the economic ladder; supporting patients with acute conditions; treating those with complicated illnesses; and research and teaching.

The authority manages the city’s 43 public hospitals and institutions.

“We hope to help patients in need who are among those aims, so that they will not go poor because of illnesses,” Lo told the Post in an interview on Monday.

The minister said that while medical expenses at public hospitals were heavily subsidised by the government, at nearly 97 per cent of the cost, some patients could face greater financial burdens if they stayed in hospital for months or relied on expensive treatments.