Will private Hong Kong hospitals set high fee estimates to avoid explaining bill?
Lawmakers worry that hospitals will presume worst-case scenario under government proposals aimed at improving price transparency

But Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau on Friday dismissed the concerns and said private operators would not want to scare away patients by setting very high price expectations.
The Health Bureau earlier this week put a range of measures to the Legislative Council for discussion, including a requirement for private hospitals to give price estimates and a written explanation to patients or their family members if the final bill for procedures was significantly higher, such as 20 per cent or more than the expected amount.
But lawmakers raised doubts about how the government would ensure the rights of patients were protected.
“Private hospitals might include potential stays in the intensive care unit in the fee estimates for operations that are a bit more complicated,” legislator Rebecca Chan Hoi-yan said.