Health chief says 7-day hotel quarantine to remain for now

By The SUN 

Secretary Lo says hotel quarantine may be shortened once testing and detection capacities are improved 

Health Secretary Lo Chung-mau has said more studies and preparations are needed before Hong Kong reconsiders its policy of requiring inbound travelers to spend seven days under hotel quarantine.

Speaking at his first daily Covid briefing since taking up the post as health chief on Jul 1, Prof Lo said the government will have to look at the data and assess the impact of lifting the flight suspension mechanism before deciding on whether to ease the quarantine rules.

Noting that 60% of all infected new arrivals are detected at the airport, and 95% overall are tested positive before the fifth day of quarantine, Lo said there is still a need to ensure that the rest of the imported infections are tracked even after the isolation period.

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“We must be well prepared before we introduce changes to the current policy, but we are working very hard on this,” said Lo. “We are raising our PCR testing capacity and adopt technology to ensure that persons who leave their quarantine hotel can still be tracked when they return home.”

He pointed out that only 200 – or 2 percent - of every 10,000 inbound travelers test positive for Covid on arrival, so the aim now is to identify this small group more accurately so that the quarantine for the remaining 9,800 could be shortened.

By ending the flight bans, he said the government was not changing its strategy on preventing the importation of cases but was just implementing changes based on precise data.

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Lo also said that 100 flights were banned between January and June this year, with 534 passengers testing positive for Covid. With each flight that was grounded for five days, thousands of travelers were affected, he said.

“The social cost of the flight suspensions was very high,” he said.

Lo called on people not to let their guard down as the Centre for Health Protection reported 2,945 cases on Friday, slightly down from the more than 3,000 reported yesterday.

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All but 197 of the new cases were local infections.

He said the figure could double to 6,000 in two weeks based on previous trends if the government fails to test and isolate those who are infected to prevent them spreading the virus around.

"We will have to carry out more vigilant and more precise testing and more vigilant isolation for all those infected, using home isolation and specific isolation facilities to make sure that those infected are not walking around in our community and causing outbreaks,” he said.

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Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protections said the new cases took the caseload from the fifth wave to 1,252,436.

Three new Covid-related deaths were reported, involving two men and one woman aged between 64 and 85 years old, all with chronic diseases. Their deaths took the overall tally to 9,196.

Of the 197 imported cases, 74 were detected at the airport, including 63 from the United Kingdom. The remaining cases included 93 identified in quarantine hotels, and 23 after the mandatory seven-day isolation period.

Eleven new cases involving the BA.4 or BA.5 Omicron sub-variants were found, along with 20 additional cases of the BA.2.12.1 sub-variant.

The new local cases included 214 reported by 191 schools; as well as three from elderly homes and two from care centers.

The total number of patients admitted in public hospitals now stands at 852. Among them 14 are in critical condition, including three in intensive care, while 18 are in serious condition.

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Peso firmer after plunging to 17-year low of 56.06:$1

 By The SUN

Central Bank says almost all currencies have retreated against US dollar

The Philippine peso settled at 55.97 to the US dollar today, recovering from the 17-year low registered yesterday at 56.06. It was the lowest close since Sept 27, 2005, when the peso hit 56.295 to US$1.

But today's recovery is of little consolation, considering that since the start of 2022, the peso has lost nearly a tenth of its value, making it the worst performing currency in Asean, or the Southeast Asian markets. The peso started this year at 51 to $1 and has since gone on a steady decline.

But Felipe Medalla, new Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor, said in his first public statement that the decline is not unique to the peso.

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Nearly all currencies are weakening  against the US dollar because the United State Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates in its own fight against the rise in US consumer prices, resulting in funds worldwide gravitating to the US, he said.

The weak peso has benefited exporters and OFWs, in that their incomes had been incresed in peso terms.

But such benefits have been limited.

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In the case of OFWs, the higher prices of goods their families buy in the Philippines – at an inflation rate of 6.1 per cent last June -- require them to remit more.

In addition, the effects of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the US-led sanctions against Moscow -- which raised world market prices of wheat and crude oil, among other vital commodities – ensure that high inflation would be long-term.

Exporters, on the other hand, earn just $6 for every $10 that the country pays for products it needs to buy abroad.

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In April, for example, exports totalled $6.13 billion while imports amounted to $10.90 billion, resulting in a deficit of $4.77 billion, according to figures from the Philippine Statistics Authority.

This has helped erode the Philippines’ gross international reserves (GIR), or its deposits of dollars to pay for these imports.

GIR decreased for the fourth straight month and stood at $101.98 billion at the end of June, down 5.6 per cent from $107.8 billion at end February, according to BSP figures.

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But BSP said the amount left was still enough to cover 8.5 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income.

Michael Ricafort, chief economist at the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., told the Inquirer: “The decline in the GIR somewhat correlated with the weaker peso in recent months. Nevertheless, the GIR is … still way above the minimum international threshold of three to four months and could still provide enough buffer/support [to counter] any speculations against the peso.”

Hopefully, new laws signed by former President Rodrigo Duterte relaxing restrictions in foreign investments would be implemented to counteract such dollar outflow.

These laws – which amend the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, Foreign Investment Act and Public Service Act -- remove restrictions on foreign ownership of companies in the business of electricity, petroleum, water, seaports and public utility vehicles.

 

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Covid cases top 3,000

By The SUN 

Increased mobility is said to be a factor in the rise in infections (File)

Health authorities reported 3,028 coronavirus cases on Thursday, the first time the daily tally breached the 3,000 mark since the Omicron surge began easing in April. The figure includes 172 imported cases.

The caseload is higher by 213 compared with yesterday’s figure.

The Centre for Health Protection warned that the rising number of infections could lead to more patients getting hospitalized or developing serious complications.

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"As the case number goes up, the number and proportion of hospital admissions will go up," warned CHP’s Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan at today’s press briefing.

"There's a chance that hospitalisations, the need for intensive care and even the death toll may rise.”

Chuang said the World Health Organisation expects the more infectious BA.5 subvariant of Omicron to become the dominant Covid strain in many parts of the world, and the CHP is monitoring whether Hong Kong will be one of these places.

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She said that globally, the number of patients found to carry BA.5 has grown from 37 percent to 52 percent of the overall infections, while those carrying BA.4 also increased from 11 percent to 12 percent. On the other hand, those with BA.2.12.1 infections have gone down.

In Hong Kong, an additional 17 cases carrying the BA.4 or BA.5 sub-variants were identified through genome sequencing, while 42 carried the BA.2.12.1 strain, including 28 which are untraceable.

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Among the imported cases, 98 were detected at the airport, and 49 of these came from the United Kingdom, indicating a worsening infection situation in the country. There were 57 other travelers who tested positive during quarantine while 17 were uncovered after completing their seven-day isolation.

The total infection figure from the fifth wave has now risen to more than 1.249 million, while the death toll went up to 9,194 after a 79-year-old female patient passed away yesterday.

A total of 201 infections were reported by 180 schools, involving 163 students and 38 teachers.

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Two schools, Cannan Kindergarten and Ma On Shan Ling Liang Primary School were told to suspend a class each for a week because two or more infections were reported from there.

There are now 861 patients admitted in public hospital and treatment facilities. Among them, 12 are in critical condition, including one in intensive care; while 15 are in serious condition.

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HK stops ban on flights that bring in Covid-infected passengers

 By The SUN

 

Airlines as well as travelers welcomed the news

The government announced today, Thursday, that it was suspending effective immediately its much-criticized flight suspension mechanism which was activated when a certain number of passengers flown in tested positive on arrival at the airport.

Instead, a previous practice of conducting PCR tests on the third day of quarantine of new arrivals will be resumed. This means arriving passengers will be tested seven times: within 48 hours prior to boarding, on arrival, the 3^rd and 5^th day while under seven-day hotel quarantine, plus day 9 and 12 after ending their quarantine.

The announcement said a current ban on four flights that triggered the suspension mechanism will be lifted immediately.

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No mention was made on whether the government will go one step further and cut the mandatory seven-day hotel quarantine. Previous reports said the proposal that would most likely get the government’s approval is for travelers to stay five days in a hotel, and the remaining two days under home quarantine.

On Tuesday Chief Executive John Lee said he had asked Health Secretary Lo Chung-mau to prepare a list of options for improving anti-pandemic measures, including a review of the seven-day hotel quarantine.

The announcement was made as Hong Kong's daily Covid-19 caseload shot up to 3,028 today, which included 172 imported cases.

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In its statement, the government said that available data and scientific analysis show that more frequent PCR tests for inbound travelers is more effective in halting the importation of Covid cases.

Current data show that while local infections have reached four-digits since mid-June and are still going up, the number of imported cases hovered at “just around a few dozen to below 200,” accounting for less than 10 percent of the overall tally.

More importantly, said the statement, over half of the imported cases were detected at the airport. Including those found during the quarantine period, the vast majority of imported cases were discovered, thus greatly reducing the risk of community outbreaks from them.

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With the restoration of the Day 3 test, the government said infected persons will be identified sooner, and provide authorities with timely data to help them conduct more precise and targeted anti-epidemic work.

The statement also acknowledged that the flight suspensions had caused problems to many Hong Kong-bound passengers in terms of securing new flights and/or bookings at quarantine hotels.

“When the supplies of seats on flights and DQH rooms are tight, the consequential social costs would be quite high,” said the statement. 

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“Given that July and August have always been the peak period for overseas Hong Kong people, in particular students pursuing studies overseas to return to Hong Kong, the social costs incurred by the flight suspension mechanism would be quite significant.”

Given the said reasons, continuing the flight suspensions at this stage is not very cost-effective in avoiding the importation of cases, added the statement.

The flight suspension mechanism was triggered when at least five passengers or 2/3 of all travelers on a single flight, whichever is smaller, test positive on arrival in Hong Kong.

The government said it will continue to refine border controls with the aim of guarding against the importation of cases while improving quarantine arrangements for inbound travelers to facilitate the flow of people necessary for resuming normal lives.

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Pinay pinalaya dahil labis ang inilaging panahon sa kulungan kaysa sa sentensya

 

Pinalaya ng korte ang Pilipina dahil mas matagal pa ang inilagi niya sa kulungan kaysa sa sentensya nya

Isang Pilipina ang pinakawalan agad ngayon (July 6) matapos sentensiyahan ng tatlong linggong pagkabilanggo sa salang pagnanakaw ng Octopus card ng kanyang alaga, dahil sobra na ang inilagi niya sa kulungan.

Ito ang ikalawang kasong kinaharap ni M. B. Grospe, 40, dating domestic helper, mula noong ikulong siya ng limang buwan noong Disyembre dahil iniwan niya sa MTR station ng Hang Hau ang dalawa niyang alaga -- isang lalaki na isang taong gulang at isang siyam na taong gulang na babae -- upang magnakaw ng tsokolate.

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Agad umamin si Grospe, isang dating domestic helper, nang basahan siya ng kasong isinampa ng pulis na ninakaw niya ang Octopus card, na nakita sa kanyang mga gamit matapos mawala ito ng kanyang alagang babae.

Lumabas din sa pagsusuri na ginamit niya ang card nang ilang beses, kaya naghahabol ang kanyang amo ng $300.

Tumanggi si Principal Magistrate Bina Chainrai na ipabalik kay Grospe ang $300 sa amo dahil wala itong ipinakitang basehan sa sinisingil.

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Pero dahil binanggit ng abogado ni Grospe na sobra na ang inilagi niya sa kulungan sa dapat na parusang tatlong linggong pagkabilanggo, iniutos ni Chainrai na agad na itong pakawalan. 

Dapat kasi ay noong Mayo pa dapat natapos ni Grospe ang kanyang naunang sentensiya, pero hindi siya pinakawalan dahil sa ikalawang kasong inihain laban sa kanya. Halos tatlong buwan nang nakakulong si Grospe habang dinidinig ang ikalawang kaso.

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Ayon sa kanyang abugado, si Grospe ay hiwalay sa asawa at solong sumusuporta sa kanyang inang 80 taong gulang na, at sa dalawa niyang anak na babae na 18 at 22 taong gulang. Nagsisisi rin siya sa ginawa at gusto nang umuwi sa kanyang pamilya, dagdag ng abugado.

Noong Dec. 4, 2021, sa utos din ni Magistrate Chinrai, si Grospe ay ikinulong nang limang buwan matapos mapatunayan na iniwan niya ang dalawa niyang alaga sa Hang Hau MTR Station sa Tseung Kwan O upang magnakaw ng mga tsokolate sa katabing tindahan.

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Napansin ng mga tao na walang nagbabantay sa mga bata kaya tumawag sila ng pulis. Habang nangyayari ito ay nahuli naman ng ibang pulis si Grospe sa tindahan ng Best Mart 380, na binalikan lang niya para magnakaw muli.

Hinatulan si Grospe ng dalawang linggo sa salang pagnanakaw ng tsokolate sa Best Mart 380, kung saan siya nahuli, at apat na linggo sa mga naunang pagnanakaw sa parehong tindahan ng maraming iba pang bagay gaya ng 85 pakete ng tsokolate at anim na lata ng luncheon meat.

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Para sa pag-abandona sa dalawang bata sa MTR, pinarusahan siya ni Chainrai ng apat na buwang kulong.

Dahil pinag-sabay nang isang linggo ang dalawang sentensiya, naging limang buwan ang kabuuang parusa kay Grospe.

 

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Hospitalization rate up as Covid caseload tops 2.8k

By Daisy CL Mandap

 

Dr Kwan says the number of patients in hospitals has doubled in the past month

 The Hospital Authority has expressed alarm at the rise in the number of hospitalization among Covid-19 patients, saying some of its services may be adjusted again if the situation deteriorates.

The increase in hospitalization follows a rise in the number of daily infections. As of today, Jul 6, the caseload has gone up to 2,815, of which 143 are imported. This was nearly a fourth of the total tally yesterday.

Speaking at today’s press briefing, Dr Gladys Kwan, a chief manager at HA, presented  statistics showing that the number of Covid patients getting admitted to hospitals on a daily basis has more than doubled.

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From about 30 to 40 patients per day, the number has risen to more than 100 in the past week, said Kwan. The total number of admitted patients has also doubled from about 400 to 800 in the past month alone.

As of today, a total of 830 patients are receiving treatment at different public hospitals, including the infection control centre at North Lantau Hospital. That includes the 97 who were admitted yesterday.

Equally alarming, said Kwan, was the noticeable increase in the number of critical and seriously ill patients. The latest figures show14 are in critical condition, including two who are in the intensive care units; and 12 are in serious condition.

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A few weeks ago, the total number was just about a dozen, or less than half of today’s tally, said Kwan.

“So we are concerned that the gravity of the cases has increased,” she said.

Because of the rising trend in hospitalization and severity of cases, she said hospital authorities have set up a central command committee to monitor the situation on a daily basis.

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She called on the public to increase their vigilance, get vaccinated if they have not done so yet and carry out regular tests if they belong to high-risk groups.

The HA graph shows a steep rise in hospitalization from June to July

Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protection also said officials are worried about the rise in the number of cases involving Omicron sub-variants, in particular BA.4 and BA.5, which are also known to cause re-infection among patients.

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Chuang said that the proportion of local cases with these sub-variants has gone up from about 0.8 percent to more than 1 percent of the total caseload.

She said there were 22 new cases of BA.4 and BA.5 detected yesterday, of which only  10 were linked to previous infections; and 19 involving BA.2.12.1.

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Including today’s caseload the total tally from the fifth wave has risen to more than 1.246 million.

One more Covid-related death was recorded, involving a 71-year-old woman who was bedridden and suffered from hypertension and diabetes. Her case took the death toll to 9,193.

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Pinay, inakusahang nagnakaw ng sari-saring gamit ng amo na nagkakahalaga diumano ng $270k

 

Ibinalik sa kulungan ang Pilipina hanggang sa susunod na pagdinig sa Kwun Tong Court

Isang Pilipinang domestic helper ang humarap ngayon (July 6) sa Kwun Tong Court sa dalawang kaso ng pagnanakaw ng mga ari-arian na ang kabuuang halaga diumano ay $270,700, mula sa bahay ng kanyang amo na taga Silver Terrace Road, Tseung Kwan O,.

Binasa ng tagasalin ang sakdal kay Rhea Labrador, 38 na taong gulang, sa harap ni Principal Magistrate Bina Chainrai.

Dahil hindi humiling si Labrador na makapag-piyansa upang makalayang pansamantala, ibinalik siya sa kulungan hanggang sa susunod na pagdinig ng kaso sa Aug . 9.

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Ang dalawang kaso ni Labrador ay ang mga sumusunod:

Para sa unang sakdal na nagkakahalaga ng $267,200 na pag-aari ni Chu Wing Hei:

• Dalawang pares ng hikaw.
• Isang kwintas.
• Isang 10-cent Malaysian ringgit coin.
• Isang puting card holder.
• Dalawang bag.

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• Limang lipstick.
• Dalawang case ng eye shadow.
• Isang bote ng face cream.
• Anim na bote ng pabango.
• Isang bote ng hand sanitizer.

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• Isang bote ng face concentrate.
• Isang paper box. 
• Apat na eyeliner.
• Dalawang bote ng makeup remover.
• Apat ng tubo ng cream.
• Isang bote ng sun cream.

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• Dalawang pakete ng hair conditioner.
• Isang sabon.
• Isang cosmetic sponge.
• Isang bote ng White Flower oil.
• Isang power bank.
• Tatlong ball pen.

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Para sa pangalawang sakdal na nagkakahalaga ng $3,500 na pag-aari ni Nancy Ng:

• Isang pares ng high heel na sapatos.
• Isang payong.
• Apat na supot.
• Apat na Chinese New Year decoration.
• Dalawang noteboook.
• 118 red packet na walang laman.
• Tatlong bote ng pabango.

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