Where will a Hong Kong Health Insurance plan cover me and what will it cost?
I will be relocating to Hong Kong for employment purposes and would like to learn more about the health insurance options available through your company.... Where will a plan cover me? what are the costs? and why should i take this over the local medical system? All advice gratefully received. Thanks.
Hong Kong Health Insurance offers health insurance plans to expats living in Hong Kong. Working with a large scope of health insurance providers from around the world, Hong Kong Health Insurance offers information and advice on the wide range of health insurance plans that are available to expats living in Hong Kong today.
A Hong Kong Health Insurance plan will typically provide expats with hospital cover in Hong Kong, plus the option to add on extra medical benefits such as maternity, outpatient, and dental care coverage. Hospital benefits will typically include accommodation in a private room, plus diagnostic tests, surgery and other medical procedures covered to the annual limit applied to the plan. While Hong Kong Health Insurance plans typically provide cover for doctors consultations, a Hong Kong outpatient plan can be made more comprehensive to include health care screening, physiotherapy, osteopathy, massage, chinese medicine, homeopathy, psychologists and other complimentary health care and wellness benefits. Maternity benefits and dental benefits can also be added onto a Hong Kong Health insurance plan, although these benefits will typically include a 12 month waiting period before affording access to treatment.
Hong Kong Health Insurance can offer local coverage or international coverage. An international health insurance plan, which we highly recommend for Hong Kong expats, will entitle you to medical treatment in Hong Kong and any other country you may visit around the world. Whereas a local Hong Kong health insurance plan will limit your medical benefits to Hong Kong only. An international plan will allow you to select the country in which you receive treatment as well the hospital and doctor who treats you, ultimately providing you access to the best health care treatment in the world. International plans also provide more flexibility; if you decide to return home or move overseas, an international plan can travel with you without interrupting your health insurance benefits such a physiotherapy treatment plan from a recovering injury.
The cost of a Hong Kong health insurance plan will be influenced largely by your age at the time of application, generally the older your age the higher your health insurance premium will increase. Secondly, the country you live in and the geographic cover which you have selected will also have an impact on your premium; a plan with worldwide health insurance coverage will cost more than a plan limited to medical cover in Hong Kong only. Other factors include the level of your medical benefits; any added benefits you have selected such as maternity or dental cover will also increase your premium.
While Hong Kong’s Public hospitals are able to provide adequate medical care, the medical standards at a Hong Kong Private Healthcare facility are exceptionally high. Public hospitals in Hong Kong, like other public health care systems worldwide, tend to be overcrowded and patients can be waiting for hours to see a doctor. As such, most expats will opt for treatment at a Hong Kong private facility to ensure immediate access to quality health care. While doctors in Hong Kong's public hospitals can speak English, language barriers are not uncommon which can ultimately be a barrier to quality health care. Hong Kong's private facilities are largely catered towards the expatriate market, as such medical treatments are of western standard and staffed with doctors highly proficient in speaking English.
With modern medical technology and highly experienced internationally trained doctors, Hong Kong offers one of the best health care systems to expats living in Asia. However, Private Health Care in Hong Kong has also been listed as one the most expensive health care systems in the world and this is largely due to the high medical costs billed at private health care facilities. For example, a doctor consultation at the Matilda Private Hospital costs between US$64 to US$102 and hospital accommodation is billed at approximately US$761 per night. Although everyday health care expenses may be affordable, in the event of an accident or serious medical illness, access to quality health care will be highly expensive in Hong Kong. Without a health insurance plan, expats in Hong Kong will be left with a large hospital bill plus no coverage of health care treatments they may require once they have left the hospital. As such, expats in Hong Kong are highly recommended to take out a Hong Kong health insurance plan that includes comprehensive hospital and outpatient cover in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong Health Insurance can assist you in finding an expatriate health insurance plan. For more information on Hong Kong Health Insurance Plans or to receive a free global health insurance quote, please contact one of our dedicated advisers today.
Categories: Coverage, Individual, Illness, Asia, Premiums, Hong Kong
Published on 2012-11-16 17:34:00