This is an extremely insightful article. American hospitals are bound by HIPAA so tightly that it's a burden for anyone to learn anything about any patient.

The recent Hong Kong protests led me to believe that Hong Kong closely resembled America in its free speech/privacy policies, but this article shows a stark contrast, where Hong Kong police may have waltzed into a hospital and obtained patient information without even auditable logging.

I say this having visited HK and the mainland recently to understand if they are comfortable for Westerners.