No plans to revive mask mandate or border tests as Hong Kong braces for flu season peak and rise in coronavirus infections, health chief says
- Waiting time at accident and emergency departments of 10 hospitals stretches longer than eight hours
- Hospital Authority had added more beds, strengthened triage services and increased number of places at general outpatient clinics to cope with rise in infections
Hong Kong’s seasonal peak in flu and Covid-19 infections may stretch into March, but the government has no plans to revive the mask mandate or a testing regime at border control points, the health chief has said.
The city is bracing for an expected surge of flu and coronavirus cases next week, and the healthcare system is already showing signs of strain. The waiting time at the accident and emergency departments of 10 public hospitals, out of 18 providing the services, occasionally stretched longer than eight hours on Saturday.
Health officials earlier reported that the hospital admission rate for patients with a principal flu diagnosis already exceeded the threshold signalling the start of the peak season, while the city was also recording more Covid-19 infections.
“We expect the peak to appear around January and February,” Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau said in a television interview. “Generally speaking, our winter peak often lasts even until March.”
But Lo said the government had no plans to reintroduce the mask mandate. Neither would authorities carry out testing on arrivals at the airport or other control points, unless new infectious diseases emerged, he added.