By The SUN
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| CE Lam says HK can't let its guard down because of threats from Delta variant |
Hong Kong will lift the ban on residents coming from places it previously classified as “extremely high risk”, but only if they are vaccinated. This was among a set of new measures that will take effect on Aug 9, according to a press release issued by the government early this morning.
The new restrictions were announced by Chief Executive Carrie Lam at a press conference held on Monday afternoon, which she said are meant to strengthen screening to prevent imported cases from leaking into the community.
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“We must build a barrier to protect people in Hong Kong,” the CE said.
Hong Kong will reclassify countries into three categories based on its risk assessment, instead of the previous five, and will impose quarantine restrictions on new arrivals depending on whether they are vaccinated or not.
All countries will now be classified as high risk, medium risk and low risk. Those previously designated as "extremely high risk" and "very high risk" are now classified as "high risk" under category A.
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Those previously classified as "high risk" and "medium risk" will be combined into category B, or medium risk.
Only category C, or "low risk" countries will remain as such.
According to the CE, only vaccinated Hong Kong residents will be allowed to enter the city from category A or high-risk places, and they must quarantine for 21 days.
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For those arriving from medium-risk places, the set quarantine period is also 21 days if they are unvaccinated. This is cut down to 14 days if they are fully vaccinated.
But if they are willing to take an antibody test on arrival and the result is positive, then the quarantine period can be cut to just seven days.
In addition, all vaccinated travelers from category B places will be allowed entry, whether they are residents or not.
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Previously, only tourists from category C or low-risk countries were allowed to come to Hong Kong. They are also allowed to spend only 7 days in hotel quarantine.
There are currently eight countries designated as "extremely high risk", from where passenger flights are not allowed to enter Hong Kong. These are the Philippines, Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Nepal, United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil.
Ireland and Russia are designated "very high-risk" place.
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Under the "high risk" category are 27 countries, including the United States, United Arab Emirates, Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Bangladesh, France and Italy.
Most other countries are designated as "medium risk" while only New Zealand and Australia are under the "low risk" category.
The full details of the reclassification and tightened restrictions can be found here: https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202108/03/P2021080200985.htm
The chief executive said restrictions should be kept in place because of the surge in Covid-19 cases all over the world due to the Delta variant.
"With that in mind, if we start to relax or open our borders without subjecting passengers arriving in Hong Kong to any quarantine, we're putting the whole community at risk," Lam said.
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| The new measures mean vaccinated travelers from the UK may fly into HK, too |
The CE's announcement was made after three more fully vaccinated returnees were confirmed today to have Covid-19 on their return to Hong Kong.
The three are a 55-year-old man who arrived from the Netherlands, a 43-year-old man who came from the United Arab Emirates, and a 36-year-old woman who flew in from the United States.
All three had taken two doses each of the BioNTech vaccine in Hong Kong on various dates between March and June this year. All are asymptomatic
In addition, the returnee from the Netherlands and the one from the USA both tested positive for antibodies in tests taken in Hong Kong on Jul 12 and 15, respectively. The first patient was also found to carry the L542R mutant strain, while the woman had the N501Y strain.
As a result, the buildings where they had resided and worked in, and places they had visited, will be put under compulsory testing notice.
The man from the Netherlands resided at Tower 6, Harbour Place in Hung Hom. He left Hong Kong on Jul 11 for Spain and his pre-boarding test result was negative. He arrived in Hong Kong via flight KL 819 on Jul 31 and his specimen taken at the airport tested positive with L452R mutant strain.
The woman from the USA resided at Bohemian House at 321 Des Voeux Road West in Sai Ying Pun. She left for the US on Jul 16 and her pre-boarding test on Jul 14 was negative. She arrived in Hong Kong on Aug 1 via flight CX883 and her specimen collected at the airport tested positive with N501Y mutant strain.
The Centre for Health Protection is conducting contact tracing and epidemiological investigation.
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