‘Cross-boundary northbound consumption” has become a trend in Hong Kong. Whether it’s the younger generation or seniors, there is a growing tendency to choose leisure and entertainment activities in the north, and medical services too. For many years, Chinese mainland residents often traveled south to Hong Kong for medical treatment. Now, Hong Kong patients and medical professionals are heading north for healthcare services, creating a two-way flow.
The reasons attracting people to go north or south can be summarized in one phrase: “Affordable, high-quality, satisfying, and fast” — meaning cost-effective, excellent quality, a satisfactory experience, and fast service. In terms of Hong Kong’s healthcare system, institutions under the Hospital Authority charge relatively low fees with guaranteed service quality, but patients often face long waiting times. Private medical services provide high quality and short waiting times, but the costs are relatively high. In contrast, mainland hospitals are generally more affordable with shorter waiting times, with the quality of medical care varying across different institutions.
Healthcare is not limited to diagnosis and treatment but encompasses a broad industry chain. First, in terms of prevention, it includes health maintenance, medical check-ups, and wellness. For example, mainland residents, trusting Hong Kong’s medical standards and seeking more options, often travel to Hong Kong for vaccinations. Second, in terms of diagnosis and treatment, not only do many mainland residents choose to seek medical care in Hong Kong, but also many Hong Kong residents, considering costs, travel north for common ailments and even surgery. Third, in terms of rehabilitation, as rehabilitation therapy does not rely on high-end equipment, the comparative cost advantage has led a significant number of Hong Kong residents in recent years to opt for rehabilitation in the north. Fourth, in terms of elderly care, mainland eldercare institutions offer better value for money, attracting many Hong Kong seniors to spend their retirement years in the mainland part of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
Another critical aspect is education. With two top-tier medical schools continuously improving, Hong Kong still leads in Western medicine education in Asia. However, for Chinese medicine education, Hong Kong students still need to travel north for clinical internships.
The goal of medical integration is not to force patients to seek treatment in specific areas but to help them more accurately identify the most suitable medical institutions for their conditions and the most authoritative experts in the relevant fields. Through information integration, patients could compare the specialties and service levels of multiple medical institutions without leaving their homes
Lastly, data is a vital component. Medical data not only records patients’ health conditions but also serves as an essential asset for commercial applications and medical research. Currently, Hong Kong’s population is approximately 7.5 million, with the Hospital Authority likely recording medical data for about 7 million people. In contrast, Greater Bay Area mainland medical data can reach up to 86 million records. Successfully promoting medical integration in the Greater Bay Area would significantly benefit the development of Hong Kong’s medical industry.
To advance medical integration in the Greater Bay Area, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government’s role is crucial. The government might consider adopting a laissez-faire approach, similar to its stance on the catering industry. However, I believe that in the case of medical services integration, the government should take a proactive and interventionist role by introducing corresponding policy measures for guidance.
The reason is that medical integration is a key focus for the country’s future development. The Hong Kong and Macao Chapter of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) explicitly supports Hong Kong in “better integrating into the national development agenda”, with healthcare development being an integral part. The development goals of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) emphasize that Hong Kong must not only integrate better but also contribute to serving the national development agenda, and the healthcare industry itself falls under the service sector. Additionally, the 2035 development goals for the Greater Bay Area explicitly call for achieving high-quality “connectivity”, with the medical industry included. Thus, medical integration in the Greater Bay Area has become an inevitable trend and a national policy. Therefore, the government needs to introduce relevant measures to encourage more mainland residents to seek medical care in Hong Kong while promoting greater use of mainland healthcare services by Hong Kong residents.
To this end, I suggest that the government prioritize implementing a “money follows the patient” mechanism. Specifically, on the one hand, it could assist mainland residents in spending more conveniently in Hong Kong. Mainland residents are accustomed to using WeChat Pay or Alipay and often do not carry large amounts of cash, let alone Hong Kong dollars, when visiting. The government should strive to improve the convenience of using renminbi payments locally. On the other hand, for Hong Kong residents, the government could consider expanding the scope of the Elderly Health Care Voucher to cover medical institutions not only in the Greater Bay Area but also more mainland cities, thereby providing seniors with greater options for medical care on the mainland. Furthermore, bidirectional integration in the insurance sector would also help residents use cross-boundary medical services more smoothly.
I recommend that the government strengthen collaboration with the insurance industry to promote the interconnection of medical insurance data between the two regions, enabling the mutual recognition and use of healthcare insurance services within the Greater Bay Area and beyond. This would facilitate residents’ access to more options and more flexible medical resources.
Second, I suggest that the government also advance an “information follows the patient” mechanism. To achieve the connectivity of medical information, it is essential to ensure smooth bidirectional data flow. Currently, medical records in the mainland are, by law, in Chinese, while Hong Kong commonly uses English. Therefore, accurately translating between the two languages is a crucial step in ensuring effective data circulation. Moreover, the sharing of medical data should not only include patient case information but also comprehensive data such as diagnostic and treatment standards, therapeutic resources and medical expertise from both regions.
The goal of medical integration is not to force patients to seek treatment in specific areas but to help them more accurately identify the most suitable medical institutions for their conditions and the most authoritative experts in the relevant fields. Through information integration, patients could compare the specialties and service levels of multiple medical institutions without leaving their homes. If certain local medical conditions were superior, patients could prioritize receiving treatment locally, saving time and effort. This dissemination of medical information should be true, unexaggerated and fair to both sides. All should obey the same set of rules and regulations so that it is a level playing field.
For patients choosing to seek medical care in Hong Kong, the government should also provide policy-level support, such as extending the validity of their entry permits. Treatment of disease is often a long-term process, especially for complex or critical illnesses, which may take months or even longer and cannot be completed in a short period. During this time, patients often need to travel between the two regions multiple times, and current entry-permit arrangements may cause inconvenience. Additionally, some patients require accompaniment for medical visits, and the convenience of entry permits for those people too should be considered in the policy.
Medical integration in the Greater Bay Area has become an inevitable major trend. I am sure that this integration will arrive at a new equilibrium between the two regions benefiting the population at large. It will help to further enhance the influence of mainland medical brands while gradually reducing overall medical costs in Hong Kong
As mentioned earlier, apart from patients, the circulation of medical professionals is also a current trend. However, there are still many obstacles to the exchange of medical personnel between the two regions. Mainland doctors wishing to practice in Hong Kong must pass examinations or obtain a license to practice from the Hong Kong Medical Council, while Hong Kong doctors seeking to practice in the mainland need to obtain local medical licenses. According to a survey, only about 2 percent of Hong Kong doctors have practiced or intend to practice in the mainland, and the proportion holding mainland medical licenses is only 13 percent, reflecting the limited willingness and practical conditions for cross-boundary practice. I do not encourage Hong Kong doctors to seek employment in the north. The main reason is that Hong Kong has long faced a shortage of medical personnel, especially in Western medicine specialties, which has placed heavy pressure on the public healthcare system. If a large number of doctors were to leave Hong Kong to practice elsewhere at this time, it would inevitably further burden Hong Kong’s healthcare system.
However, at the level of medical talent cultivation, I believe it is essential to actively encourage Hong Kong medical students to study, intern, or engage in short-term professional experience in the mainland. First, the mainland’s large population base, diverse spectrum of diseases, and rich clinical cases provide a more comprehensive learning environment for medical students, broadening their academic horizons and clinical capabilities. Second, studying or practicing in the north is also an important opportunity for young Hong Kong medical students to gain a deeper understanding of the country’s current situation. Currently, some Hong Kong young people lack sufficient understanding of mainland social development and may even hold misconceptions or resistance. Through firsthand exchanges, study, and life experiences in the mainland, young people can see for themselves the actual situation of the country’s development, fostering a broader national perspective and professional outlook.
Medical integration in the Greater Bay Area has become an inevitable major trend. I am sure that this integration will arrive at a new equilibrium between the two regions benefiting the population at large. It will help to further enhance the influence of mainland medical brands while gradually reducing overall medical costs in Hong Kong. With significant integration achievements, the longstanding heavy burden on Hong Kong’s public healthcare system is also expected to ease. To achieve this goal, Hong Kong’s healthcare should be positioned in the high-end medical services sector, focusing on the diagnosis and treatment of critical and complex illnesses. Currently, the scale of Hong Kong’s medical industry is approximately HK$300 billion ($38 billion). After medical integration, the overall market capacity is expected to expand to trillions. If Hong Kong hopes to capture a larger share of this market, it must rely on strong government support and active promotion to seize the historical opportunities brought by integration.
The author is vice-president of the Hong Kong Professionals and Senior Executives Association.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
