Coronavirus: Hong Kong proposes closed-loop border reopening with mainland China, under which residents quarantine locally before crossing over; 2,945 cases logged

Hong Kong has formally proposed to the central government a closed-loop arrangement to reopen the border with mainland China, under which residents will complete their quarantine locally before travelling north.

Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau on Friday revealed the plan raised formally by his team to Beijing, while adding he would also not rule out home quarantine for overseas arrivals if there was “enough supporting evidence”.

Lo later attended the daily Covid-19 briefing for the first time as health minister and revealed details of how polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing could play a part in achieving the “dynamic zero infection” strategy and easing quarantine curbs.

At his first session with the Legislative Council’s panel on health services on Friday, Lo also said a prediction by an official that the city’s daily Covid-19 caseloads could top 6,000 in two weeks was “reasonable”, describing the trajectory as a “rebound in the fifth wave”.

“Looking at recent figures, the caseloads have doubled in roughly the last fortnight … but whether the tally will really reach 6,000 will still depend on a lot of factors including the testing rate,” Lo told lawmakers.

Health officials confirmed 2,945 Covid-19 cases on Friday, of which 197 were imported. The tally was slightly down from Thursday’s 3,028 cases, the highest since April 5, which had sparked a warning from the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch chief Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan that the mark could double to 6,000 in two weeks.

The city’s overall coronavirus tally stands at 1,264,813, with 9,410 related deaths as three more fatalities were reported.