Delivery in HK Public hospitals with dependent visa and HKID?

[meimeid]

Hi all!

In June this year my husband and I will be moving to HK, since he will be transferred for a long term secondment with his employer.
By then I will be 30 weeks pregnant.

I was informed by family and friends in HK about the more strict rules for non local residents for delivery in HK and the waiting lists. After surfing the web (some governmental sites) and querying with my husbands employer, I found out I will get a dependent visa and can apply for a HKID when we arrive.

According to the website www.ha.org.hk I will be eligible for services at a public hospital with a HKID (since private hospitals will definitely be full by the time I get there). My cousin, on the other hand, called a public hospital and they mentioned this is not the case with a dependent visa.
Can somebody confirm the first? Does someone already have experience with this situation?

I have a strong feeling I should trust the written regulation, and not someone my cousin spoke with on the phone, but just to be sure I am looking for some reassurance by someone who has gone through this by experience recently...
Who can help me?

Thanks a million!

 

[newhkmommy]

you should call the patient number for queen mary hospital (do a search here for queen mary) to get a definitive answer. but i am exactly in your situation (on dependent visa w/HKID) and i have a booking at queen mary.

 

[AmyH]

I delivered in a public hospital, on a dependant visa and it was fine. It took me about three weeks to get my HKID card once I arrived here.

 

[2010-NewDad]

You are eligible for services at a public hospital once you have your HK ID card. You can set up the appointment for your ID card through this website:

http://www.gov.hk/en/residents/immigration/idcard/hkic/bookregidcard.htm

I set up the appointment for my first day in Hong Kong - the card was ready a week or so later.

 

[meimeid]

Thanks for your replies! How far along were you when you made the booking?
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[banane76]

You don't really need to make a booking for public, but you do need to get into the system. So if you're in the catchment area for Queen Mary, I would call Tsan Yuk hospital to book your first appt to "register" into the system. You'll need proof of address, your hubby's HKID, your HKID, both your passports, a doctor referral (I think). They'll tell you what to bring. You'll be in the later stages of pregnancy, so if you have all your test results (bloodwork, Down's screening, Glucose Tolerance Test results) it might speed things up at your first appt. They'll make you watch a video. Also keep in mind, they only have a couple days a week where they do English appts, so make your appt before you even get here. I think you can google the number for them. Do you know where you will be living already? Try to get your husband's company to get your proof of address arranged so you have it all ready.