7 - Hong Kong

Summary

Hong Kong has one of the best health care systems in the world, noted for its low costs and high equity. It is a rather simple system, with hierarchical governance structures and sparse policy tools centred on public ownership and financing that have undergone only minimal changes since the 1960s. The purpose of the chapter is to describe the development and functioning of the health care system in Hong Kong and examine the policy tools that underlie it. The case shows that it is possible to achieve universal health care through traditional organizational and fiscal policy tools. The case also serves as a cautionary lesson for health policy and international consultants proposing complex mix of policy tools in health care when simpler tools used effectively can achieve universal health care. This vital lesson is lost on the Hong Kong government itself as it promotes privately financed and provided health care to complement the public system.