Hospital Crowding Not Due To Mainlanders: CE

The Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Tuesday said claims made by some people that immigrants coming from the mainland are to be blamed for overcrowding in public hospitals are unfounded and said most of the new arrivals from across the border are young people.

Lam said data shows that older people use public hospitals more, and these one-way permit holders are generally young.

The Chief Executive said that these immigrants came here for family reunions, and they are the relatives of people born in Hong Kong. As they are already Hong Kong residents, it would be a sign of intolerance to focus on how much is spent on their medical care.

Lam said she is disappointed and worried that some people in the city take such a negative and discriminatory view towards the relationship between the mainland and Hong Kong.

Some activists and groups had repeatedly called for a review of the vetting system for one-way permits for mainland immigrants.

Activists also took to the streets last Sunday, demanding the daily quota of 150 immigrants from the mainland be cut. They claimed the city's public healthcare system is being overwhelmed by the people coming in.

Reacting to the claims, the chair professor of Social Policy at the Education University, Professor Chou Kee-lee, said he doesn't think mainland immigrants should be blamed for Hong Kong's creaking health care system.

He said that locals who want to protect their benefits blaming newcomers is a worldwide trend now.