Officials are looking at making residents scan a QR code into the government’s Covid-19 risk exposure app as a prerequisite for entering certain premises, the Post learned on Saturday, as the number of untraceable infections in Hong Kong hit a three-month high. A total of 84 confirmed coronavirus cases were reported on Saturday, including 27 with no known source of infection – the highest since August 13. About 80 preliminary-positive cases were also recorded. A government source said officials were considering making the scanning of QR codes into the “ Leave Home Safe ” app a condition for entering some premises, much like temperature checks, to aid infection control and tracing. Authorities earlier said businesses providing dine-in services and premises such as gyms and cinemas would have to apply for a venue QR code on or before December 2 and display it. On Thursday, Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor told lawmakers the government would make scanning a code mandatory if necessary. Pandemic’s long-term effects cast shadow on vaccine optimism “When I mention making it compulsory for people [to scan the code] before getting into certain premises, it will spark a backlash. But if it is needed, we will definitely do it,” she said. Lam also revealed on Saturday that health officials were considering imposing harsher punishments on those who withheld information about their infections and close contacts after some people in a Covid-19 cluster linked to dancing venues allegedly concealed such particulars. At present, those who conceal or refuse to disclose information relevant to the handling of the coronavirus face a maximum penalty of a HK$50,000 fine and six months’ jail. To better protect vulnerable elderly residents, Lam said, there would be mandatory screening for care-home staff once a week, otherwise they would not be allowed to work. Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch, said from a public health angle, social-distancing measures at schools and eateries should be tightened as much as possible, but to strike a balance the government could have other considerations. “Although the number of daily cases at 80 or 90 is already a lot, the number of unlinked local cases is rapidly increasing … we might later find out some might be linked to other clusters, but the extent of spread in the community is very worrying,” Chuang said. Although the number of daily cases is already a lot, the number of unlinked local cases is rapidly increasing Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan, Centre for Health Protection Among the latest cases were 54 patients linked to previous infections, including 48 tied to the dance club cluster, the city’s largest to date with 415 patients. There were also three imported cases, taking the city’s total number of confirmed infections to 6,123, with 108 related deaths. Chuang said one of the latest patients in the cluster was a teacher from Canossa College in Quarry Bay, forcing the school to close for two weeks. A family member who teaches at Tack Ching Girls’ Secondary School in Sham Shui Po tested negative on Friday. As a precaution, the centre suggested the school halt classes for a day or two until the results of the second test were available. One untraceable case involved a cleaner at Hong Kong Red Swastika Society Tuen Mun Primary School, which resulted in it temporarily stopping classes. A high-end Italian restaurant, 8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana, in Central also had to suspend business after a chef was confirmed as infected and another worker tested preliminary-positive. Chinese University’s Professor David Hui Shu-cheong, a respiratory medicine expert and an adviser to the government on the coronavirus, said social-distancing rules should be tightened at places where people gather without wearing masks, especially restaurants and karaoke rooms. “The biggest problem is that the coronavirus has deeply penetrated the community … and the dance cluster has amplified the silent transmission chain,” he said. Hui said the app would only be successful for contact tracing if people actively downloaded it and most venues agreed to set up a QR code. “The point of the app is for [infected] people to recall where they have been during their incubation period and for others to know if they had previously been to those places,” he said. Hongkongers face hefty fines for ignoring Covid-19 test note from doctor Dr Leung Chi-chiu, a specialist in respiratory medicine, said the app was too cumbersome for users and had no direct link to cutting the silent transmission chain. “Even if the app is mandatory for all residents, are places like restaurants supposed to force customers to scan the QR code?” He suggested health authorities curtail social gatherings as soon as possible to prevent a wider virus spread. Francis Fong Po-kiu, honorary president of the Hong Kong Information Technology Federation, expected some problems if scanning was made mandatory. “How to make it compulsory? Does a security guard have to be deployed there?” Fong said. He said to make the app successful, it would need the participation of many people and premises. But the biggest challenge would be to get residents to scan the code willingly, Fong said, partly because of a lack of trust in the government. Meanwhile, Dr Linda Yu Wai-ling, a chief manager of the Hospital Authority, revealed that medical staff at Yan Chai Hospital in Tsuen Wan mistakenly put a Covid-19 patient in the wrong ward. The woman, 64, who was under quarantine, had been sent to hospital after developing a fever and pneumonia on Tuesday. As two Covid-19 tests at the hospital were negative, she was sent to a room in the general ward. But on Thursday, medical staff found the CHP had sent a fax the previous day, showing she was infected. Yu said the hospital’s computer system had not been able to show the result of her earlier sample collected at the quarantine centre because she had not been admitted at the time. “When the fax came, our colleagues forgot about that. So they discovered the case late,” Yu said. Hong Kong medical workers who joined coronavirus strike to have pay deducted She added that no one needed to be quarantined because the woman was on her own during her stay and medical staff had worn protective gear. Separately, virus testing kits were available at 121 post offices starting from Saturday, while one more community testing centre in Lai King opened. Four more new centres would open on Sunday or Monday. Wong Nai Chung Sports Centre in Wan Chai was temporarily closed from Saturday afternoon after a Covid-19 patient visited. It would reopen on Sunday after thorough cleaning. Additional reporting by Rachel Yeo and Olga Wong