Posted by
tsuiwah
20 yrs ago
OK, this is a major pet peeve for me. I was looking through my wife's OB's fee schedule and his charges for the delivery depend on the type of room my wife overnights in. I readily understand why the hospital charges more for a private room versus a semi-private room, but why should the OB charge more since the actual delivery room and his work load are the same?
Is this common in other parts of the world?
This is not a criticism against our OB (since all of them appear to do this), and in the end, our insurance carrier will cover most of the cost, but this just seems wrong in principle.
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I have never heard of this before and, like you, I think it is outrageous - it seems the attitude is, you can afford to pay more so the OB will charge you more - irrespective of the fact that the job he / she is doing is the same.
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This is standard practice in Hong Kong for all doctors/surgeons. I thinks its obscene. It begs the question: do they give lesser service to those in cheaper wards?
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"I read somewhere that you should compare it to business, premium economy and economy class when flying, although I am still none the wiser for this explanation."
I also read this argument - made by some greedy money grubbing *&^$*@^)@^$# most likely. It's so illogical it defies any further argument even. grrrrrrrrrr
The consumer council has no say in this blatant rip off??
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Yes, but the hospital isn't getting the money, the doctor is. They surely aren't doing it to subsidise the poor people in cattle class?
I look at it one way alright hahahahaha!
BTW, I am covered by insurance (though it would probably cover only half the costs of a matilda delivery) so I guess I'll go with half and half, cause HK public service isnt half bad. :D
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So, Mummy, you're saying that some OBs charge less than they feel they need to charge to make a living to 2nd or 3rd class room patients out of kindness, because the 1st class room patients pay enough to allow the OBs to extend this kind of charity to the less well off? Hmmm, sorry, don't buy that.
Comparison with room charges v the real costs of rooms is irrelevant - that IS like economy, premium economy, business class on airlines - you want more space, privacy etc, you pay more, fair enough.
But the standard of medical care from the OB should be the same irrespective of the room, so it should cost the same, that's the point.
BTW, who are the OBs who charge the standard fixed rate??? Please please tell me and save me hours of phoning around!!
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I think Mummy is just playing devils advocate, otherwise this thread would dry up if we all agreed (and who couldnt) and that would be too boring.
I wonder how the financially more well off would feel if they looked at it that way and knew they were subsidising the less well off... personally I like to pick my charities and know they were deserving, and I certainly dont want anyone elses charity. I just want fairness. And if the doctors are treating me worse cause I can't afford a better room, then I want to know that too.
Would any doctor dare to flaunt this little "system" they have going? LOL
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I just spoke to someone who had a baby last week at the adventist. They used Dr. Lam, and the whole delivery (normal VB) was 27K HK, hospital for 3 days, doctor, father's meals etc.
This gives me hope...
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OK Mummy, finally understand what you're saying re the room packages - all other things in the package being the same, the difference in the costs should relate to the room rates per night - but it doesn't. So the hospitals are playing the same game - which is even more annoying!!
You seem to have done a lot of research so a quiet tip on the decision you make re doc, hospital and room would be very welcome if you feel generous enough to share it!
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Almost everyone here seems to think this pricing system is absurd. As you're all big boys and girls, you presumably all asked your OBs for an explanation before coming to sulk in a corner on AsiaXpat. What did the OBs say?
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Excellent question. I've not got there yet, but I'm likely to not play ball.
Can we do something, or do we throw our hands in the air and say that's just the way it is? I mean, great social changes HAVE been brought about by a small group before this... ;D
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ScreenName, call me a wimp, but I am not prepared to challenge our OB at this point in our relationship (although I may be willing to this weekend when I see him again).
Had I known before we chose our OB (after visits to two other OBs who were disappointing or outright unethical) about the different fee schedule, I would have negotiated the lowest tiered fee before choosing. Unfortunately, with the due date just round the corner, I am not willing to rock the boat and risk the doctor-patient relationship and be responsible for anything but the best care for my wife and newborn.
If we are in this situation again in the future, I will definitely make it part of the conversation during the initial consultation.
I just never thought this type of discriminatory pricing would be tolerated anywhere, especially Hong Kong. The argument of subsidizing poorer patients just doesn't hold water since the government hospitals are a reasonable and well-funded alternative.
The middle class truly gets squeezed in this city.
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This is called holding parents to ransom. They know people won't take the chance to change in case anything goes wrong with the birth. BTW, like I said, this is not only OBs but all docs/surgeons. I have a long story which involves a surgeon trying to sell me an operation I didnt need (I got a second opinion). Thats how I found out about the tiers, which were exorbitant, even at the lowest level.
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