Experts denounce Canto-pop star’s claim of harmful flu jabs as ‘totally wrong’ amid deadly virus outbreak in Hong Kong

Kay Tse’s audio message on bacteria and mercury in the flu vaccine went viral as health authorities urged children and seniors to get vaccinated in a bid to control the surge in flu cases

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Canto-pop star Kay Tse, a mother of two, said her audio message claiming that flu vaccines were harmful was not meant for public circulation but was part of a private conversation with friends. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Published: 1:57pm, 8 Feb 2018Updated: 9:26pm, 8 Feb 2018

A viral message by Canto-pop star Kay Tse On-kei on the flu vaccine containing mutated bacteria and mercury was widely denounced by medical and health experts as well as the Department of Health on Thursday, with Hong Kong’s Medical Association rebutting the rumours as “absolutely absurd”.

The five-minute audio recording by Tse, a parent of two young children, went viral over WhatsApp instant messaging on Wednesday night – hours after the government announced that all kindergartens, primary schools and special schools would start their Lunar New Year holidays earlier than planned to curb the spread of flu, which has killed more than 120 people in the last month.

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Health authorities had appealed to parents to vaccinate their children as flu season was expected to last for several more weeks.

But some clinics ran out of vaccine stocks and reportedly charged more than HK$1,900 for one injection. Children under 12 and seniors over 65 can get a HK$190 subsidy for the vaccine at participating doctors’ clinics.

On Thursday morning, Tse admitted that the message was from her, but said it was not meant for public circulation.

“The audio recording was from exchanges in a private group between me and my friends. I was also shocked that it spread to the public and was reported by the media,” Tse said in a Facebook post.