Opinion | Hong Kong’s black market for dental care won’t be fixed by arresting helpers
A makeshift clinic run by domestic workers highlights the need for more affordable dental care and community support
While the raid was hailed as a victory against “illegal labour activities”, this overlooked the desperation that drives people to seek dental care from untrained practitioners who taught themselves using YouTube videos.
The facts suggest not a criminal enterprise but a form of community self-help. Treatments reportedly cost between HK$150 and HK$500 – a fraction of the HK$1,000-plus charged by licensed dentists. The clinic operated only on Sundays, the one day domestic workers are allowed to have off.
The Immigration Department condemned the “dire” state of hygiene at the clinic and arrested the women for violating visa rules and practising without registration. Legally, the charges hold. Morally, they miss the point. The real public health crisis is not six women helping their community, but the hundreds, perhaps thousands, of other domestic workers living with untreated dental pain.
After all, which poses the greater risk to society: imperfect treatment or no treatment at all?