Coronavirus: most Hongkongers do not need fourth Covid shot, vaccine expert says
- Professor Lau Yu-lung says priority is still to boost the three-dose inoculation rate among vulnerable elderly residents
- For those aged 18 to 59, three shots provide enough protection, he says
Professor Lau Yu-lung, who chairs the government’s Scientific Committee on Vaccine Preventable Diseases, on Monday said the priority remained convincing the vulnerable elderly to take a third vaccine shot, noting the rate of severe illness or death among residents aged 18 to 59 was close to zero.
With nearly 95 per cent of the population covered by at least two doses, infection levels have steadily declined, dropping to 190 cases on Monday, the lowest since 131 were logged on February 4. No new coronavirus-related deaths were reported.
Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan, the head of the communicable disease branch at the Centre for Health Protection, was upbeat in her assessment of the situation but continued to stress that sudden changes could not be ruled out.
“Various indicators, including sewage and community monitoring, have shown the local epidemic to be stable and going down,” Chuang said. “Today the cases have fallen below 200, but we can’t rule out there are ups and downs.”
Health officials identified two more infections tied to a cluster at the Lan Kwai Fong Hotel in Sheung Wan, where a couple returning from the United States stayed while infected with the BA.2.12.1 subvariant of the Omicron strain.
The two new patients, a 76-year-old woman and 67-year-old man, were at a McDonald’s branch in Tai Koo Shing at the same time as the couple on May 13. Three other diners at the outlet have also been confirmed as infected.