By The SUN
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| Prof Hui says after the infection peaks, the quarantine may be lifted in November |
Government expert adviser David Hui said on Saturday that he
expected Covid-19 cases to peak later this month, but warned the public against
attending large-scale gatherings during the upcoming Mid-Autumn festival.
Speaking at a radio program, Hui said that if the daily tally declines next month and the public health care system is not overwhelmed with cases, then the mandatory quarantine for inbound travelers may be scrapped by November.
He made his statement as Hong Kong reported 10,426 new infections, the second time this week that the number breached the 10,000-mark since late March.
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| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
Hui said it appears three doses of a vaccine are no longer enough to protect people from getting infected, especially when they gather in large numbers.
This was what happened to several doctors who all came down with the virus last week, after attending a wedding reception.
He said the new government requirement for people to present a negative rapid antigen result before attending gatherings of eight people or more would help curb the spread of the virus.
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However, he said the official infection tally may not be accurate as some people who test positive on RATs may not be reporting their infections anymore.
The Chinese University professor said the real time reproductive number is now still at 1.3, so the daily infection tally will continue to rise for now. The vaccination rate for children and the elderly is still at a low level, which contribute to the problem.
Thus, the mandatory three-day hotel quarantine and four-day medical surveillance required of new arrivals cannot be lifted just yet, he said. Public hospitals will again be put under “tremendous pressure” if the cases continue to rise.
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"But hopefully when the BA.5 wave peaks in around September, then the cases will come down,” said.
“At the same time, if we can continue to lift the vaccination rate to generate better protection, then hopefully by November we will be in a much better position."
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| Dr Lau says an elderly man was found dead at home days after testing positive |
Meanwhile, Dr Lau Ka-hin of the Hospital Authority again appealed to the elderly or their family members to make sure they report their Covid infection promptly, and seek medical help even if they don’t have symptoms.
Lau made the appeal after reporting the case of a 69-year-old man who was found dead at his home by relatives. The man, who was unvaccinated, had tested positive for Covid-19 on Aug 28 but did not seek medical help. He was unvaccinated.
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| Press for details |
He was among seven infected people who died yesterday, pushing the death tally in the fifth wave to 9,503. The six others all died in public hospitals – two had three shots, three had two, and the last did not receive any vaccination.
The number of Covid patients now in public hospitals has gone up to 2,739, and they include 61 in critical condition and 51 in serious condition.
Among those listed as critical, 16 are in intensive care units, including a five-year-old girl who has been fighting for her life since mid-August.
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| BASAHIN ANG DETALYE |
A total of 318 patients have recovered, and 286 of them have been discharged.
Dr Albert Au of the Centre for Health Protection said that the day’s tally included 10,222 that were locally transmitted and 204 imported cases.
Among the imported cases, 65 were detected at the airport, 61 in quarantine hotels, and 71 between days 4 and 7. A further seven were found after day 7 but had a low viral load, suggesting they were reinfections.
The imported cases came from 44 countries, of which had more than 10 cases each: United Kingdom, 33; Thailand, 24; United States, 21; and the Philippines, 19.
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| PADALA NA! |
