Like Tree28Likes
  • 18 Post By shri
  • 1 Post By zerg8

March 29: Social Distancing, Travel, Quarantine & Other Local Updates

Closed Thread
  1. #1

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    薄扶林
    Posts
    47,964

    March 29: Social Distancing, Travel, Quarantine & Other Local Updates

    Secretary for Food and Health, Professor Sophia Chan
    Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Edward Yau
    Secretary for Home Affairs, Caspar Tsui
    Announcements

    • FEHD: Low case rate in the last week. Swift measures have been deployed and outbreak was contained - lowered thresholds, ambush testing, regular testing in high risk workplaces, contact tracing etc. Want to keep containing the epidemic and not undo the progress.

    • During Easter Holidays - Most measures to continue for 14 days

    • With Easter Holidays around the corner - carefully considered infection risks and from 1st of April - various public swimming pools will be opened.

    • Cinema caps - to be lifted to 70%. Eating and drinking not allowed.

    • Requirements on scheduled premises - remain in place (bars / nightclubs etc)

    • Recommending to CE - exempt religious activities - restricted to 30% - holy communion not allowed (eating and drinking) - to be updated tomorrow.

    • Overseas Arrivals: Adjust relevant boarding and testing requirements. People who are from the UK boarding restrictions will be removed - however, arrangements will be made with airlines to designated flights from 2nd week of April. Will stay at single specified hotel for 21 days. Tested on 7th and 19th date. Will announce more info late.

    • Mandatory Quarantine from Low Risk Places - 14 days. 19th day compulsory test. Low risk places - Australia, New Zealand and Singapore.

    • "Medium Risk Places" - If they have been vaccinated - quarantine for 14 days + 7 days self quarantine. If they're not vaccinated - 21 days.

    • Heard something about non-residents being allowed in

    • VACCINES: Those who have 2nd dose - after 14 days, will be incorporated into control measures - Food establishment and scheduled premises staff will be exempt from regular testing. Teaching staff who have been vaccinated will be exempt from regular testing. Visitation for nursing homes and hospitals. For public hospitals - vaccinated people who provide antigen test will be allowed to visit. Details to follow.

    • VACCINES: Considering to further adjustments to social distancing - if there is a critical number of people vaccinated.

    • Arrival Arrangements: HK residents and non-residents allowed from low risk places. 14 day mandatory hotel quarantine. Bilateral travel arrangements with Singapore are being discussed again, due to improvement in number of cases. 10 more countries are being explored (total of 16 countries - japan, korea, thailand, new zealand etc).

    • Singapore: Testing on both sides.

    • The announcements are all over the place with a lot of repetition!

    • Importance of Physical and Mental Health: Religious organisations want to resume activities. Religious organisations will impose on ceiling of number of attendance. No eating / drinking activities. Will take on board health protocols and detailed guidelines will be introduced specific to their religious requirements. More details soon.

    • Sports: Some facilities have been opened already. LCSD will open - swimming pools, beaches, children's areas, libraries etc. Details to be announce soon.

    • Get the Jab!




    Q&A


    • If the vaccination rate is enough there will be more relaxation, what is the time table / threshold for vaccination uptake?

      - Word vomit. Ventilation / masked activities / 14 days are critical etc ... bottom line - no schedule.
      - Vaccination is also about allowing travel.

    • Singapore Travel Bubble - Vaccination - Is SinoVac been approved by Singapore?

      - Travel bubble between two places is about forming a bubble. It is like a "protection bubble' (FFS!).
      - Both sides have to be happy about the epidemic situation in both places.
      - No travel for 14 days prior to departure
      - Direct flights, pre and post arrival testing
      - No word on sinovac / vaccine acceptance. (I think this part was rejected as a question)

    • Vaccination Exemptions: 2 Jabs + 14 days - will people be exempt from close contact quarantine?

      - 14 day regular testing - people who are vaccinated will not have to be tested regularly.
      - No comment made on close contacts

    • When will the BioNTech vaccine be resumed?

      - DH is working closely with Fosun and BioNTech. Confirmed that there are some packaging defects and safety of vaccine is not affected. Current doses are being tested and this week there should be a final report and vaccination can be resumed shortly.

    • When will travel arrangements be eased for low / medium risk countries?

      - Announcement will be made this week about reduction in quarantine period from 21 days to 14 days. Expect new arrangements to fall in place in 2 week.

    • When will UK travel be resumed? How?

      - Boarding restriction will be lifted and working with airlines to have a few flights to bring back residents. Will happen towards the end of April.
      - Putting further restrictions on this - test and hold at airport, testing at 7, 12, 19 days. Quarantine in HK hotel for 21 days. Press release will be issued this week.

    • BioNTech Schedule:

      - Communicating several times a day. Suspension has been requested by manufacturer. Hope to resume this week - no specific day is being targeted.

    • Vaccines and Travel:

      - Health authorities in different jurisdictions will have different standards.

    • Will you need masks while swimming?

    • Will unvaccinated people be allowed into the travel bubble?

      - Will need to take 2 doses + 14 days after second dose.
      - Announcements will be made this week.

    • Will you need to drink in bars with a straw? (Perfect example of a fucking stupid question if you ask me!)

      - Premises which remain closed, we're conducting risk assessments and no-conditions are being discussed (or are they?).



    FFS - Tired of reporters starting with "Experts Say" shit ... you're talking to experts! Lets not start this "my experts are more expert than yours" nonsense.
    Last edited by shri; 29-03-2021 at 04:27 PM.

  2. #2

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    薄扶林
    Posts
    47,964

    Using this to provide covid update from today:

    Stats

    Total Cases: 8

    International Arrivals: 7 - 5 from PH (1 on 27th, 4 earlier - 12th and positive) 1 from Turkey (crew) on 27th of March, 1 from US - Tested positive in quarantine / no variant. 6 have the variant.

    Local Case: 1 untraceable - 22 year old HKBU student. Confirmed cases earlier in his residence. Was found during compulsory testing. Last in school on 22nd. Also visited campus building - Comms and Digital Arts, Academic and Admin Building etc - compulsory testing. 21st - coached a football class - staff and kids have been quaratined. Family - Quarantined.

    Preliminary Positive: 4-5 (mostly international arrivals)

    Last edited by shri; 29-03-2021 at 04:35 PM.

  3. #3

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    薄扶林
    Posts
    47,964

    So looks like there will be a number of travel related annoucements.

    - Low / Medium / High Risk Countries
    - UK return flights
    - Singapore Travel Bubble
    - Vaccine resumption this week
    - Beaches reopening timeframe
    - Swimming pool reopening time frame
    - Easter services announcements
    - Easing of mandatory testing for vaccinated people


  4. #4

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    薄扶林
    Posts
    47,964

  5. #5

    Join Date
    Sep 2019
    Posts
    4,895

    Congratulations to the beachgoers!

    VACCINES: Those who have 2nd dose - after 14 days, will be incorporated into control measures - Food establishment and scheduled premises staff will be exempt from regular testing. Teaching staff who have been vaccinated will be exempt from regular testing. Visitation for nursing homes and hospitals. For public hospitals - vaccinated people who provide antigen test will be allowed to visit. Details to follow.
    Wonder about how this might work. Is testing already mandatory for all these categories - food establishments and teaching staff? My primary concern any time a low level of virus is circulating (if zero, vaccination/testing is irrelevant) as a policymaker might be whether 50% efficacy as proxy to risk reduction is good enough for nursing homes, which I guess would be the main drivers for hospitalisation and mortality.

  6. #6

  7. #7

    Join Date
    Jan 2018
    Location
    Taiwan and HK
    Posts
    6,158

    Will Taiwan be a province of China for the Return2HK scheme? Should be, it's the most covid-free area around...also maybe the one with the most HKers these days...


  8. #8

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Posts
    3,886
    Quote Originally Posted by AsianXpat0:
    Congratulations to the beachgoers!

    Wonder about how this might work. Is testing already mandatory for all these categories - food establishments and teaching staff? My primary concern any time a low level of virus is circulating (if zero, vaccination/testing is irrelevant) as a policymaker might be whether 50% efficacy as proxy to risk reduction is good enough for nursing homes, which I guess would be the main drivers for hospitalisation and mortality.
    Thanks for the beach sentiment, however your comment merely drives home the utterly shit governance that leads us to such a ludicrous scenario where congratulations seem warranted.

  9. #9

    Join Date
    May 2020
    Posts
    103

    Lowering the quarantine duration to 14 days should be considered - low risk countries should be able to quarantine at home and the 21 day limit should only be implemented and raised as a special circumstance rather than making it the benchmark

    The circumstances now are quite different compared to December and the policies should be revised accordingly

    tf19 likes this.