Cigna seeks mainland China partnerships as Hongkongers go north to get treatment

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An ageing population and shortage of doctors have led more Hongkongers to go north to get medical treatment, Cigna’s Hong Kong CEO says

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Enoch Yiu

Published: 8:30am, 23 Dec 2024Updated: 8:39am, 23 Dec 2024

An ageing population and shortage of doctors have caused more Hongkongers to go north for medical treatment, prompting US medical insurance giant Cigna Group to seek cross-border partnerships, according to its Hong Kong CEO.

“When you combine the ageing population percentage in Hong Kong with the low doctor ratio per person, you can see why there is a need to expand cross-border integration of healthcare services between Hong Kong and other Greater Bay Area cities,” said Jonathan Spiers, the CEO of Cigna Healthcare Hong Kong in an interview.

The Greater Bay Area plan, rolled out in 2019, seeks to integrate Hong Kong, Macau, and nine mainland cities in Guangdong province into an economic zone that Beijing would like to be globally competitive by 2035.

The numerous convenient transport connections have caused many Hongkongers to go to the Greater Bay Area to shop, dine and get medical treatment – and that is why Spiers is pushing Cigna to strengthen its mainland ties.

“For Hong Kong, a real challenge is the ageing population,” he said. “When you look at the Greater Bay Area demographics, Hong Kong has the highest percentage above 65 years at 22 per cent, while in Shenzhen, which is only 15 minutes away by high-speed train, the percentage of the population over 65 is only 3 per cent.”

Also, Hong Kong has just 2.1 doctors for every 1,000 residents, the lowest ratio in the bay area, while there are 2.9 doctors per 1,000 people in Shenzhen, according to recent research from PwC.

Hong Kong’s government is responding to that by building the city’s third medical school.