Feb.2 - Starting from Thursday, pregnant women from the Chinese mainland who are near their due date will be turned away from Hong Kong borders, unless they can prove they already have appointments in specific city hospitals.

 

According to the new policy coming into force on Feb. 1, mainland women who are more than seven months pregnant cannot enter Hong Kong if they cannot prove that a Hong Kong hospital has confirmed arrangements for their admission, said deputy secretary for Hong Kong's Health, Welfare and Food department, Patrick Nip.

 

Meanwhile, the delivery fees for mainland mothers will be raised to 48,000 HKD (6149 USD) from the original 9,000 HKD (1153 USD).

 

It's estimated that it will now cost a family 90,000 HKD (11,530 USD) to give birth to a child in Hong Kong following the implementation of the new policy. This cost includes the hospital fee and payments to the agent responsible for helping the woman to enter Hong Kong for the delivery.

 

Though much more expensive than before, many mainland women still want to give birth in Hong Kong. According to a survey carried by the Beijing Morning Post in the Beijing Maternity Hospital, over half of expectant mothers interviewed said that they would prefer to deliver their babies in Hong Kong.

 

Most of those want to earn Hong Kong residency rights for their babies, which they believe will be good for their babies' development. Others hope to take advantage of the higher quality health care available there, and to escape the crowded conditions in the mainland hospitals caused by the golden pig year baby boom.