Coronavirus: Hong Kong vaccine bookings surge on back of HK$10.8 million flat lottery; 1 imported infection confirmed

Bookings for Covid-19 vaccinations in Hong Kong, especially for the Chinese-made Sinovac jab, have surged significantly on the back of a HK$10.8 million (US$1.4 million) flat lottery offered by tycoons.

On Friday, more than 10,500 people reserved Sinovac slots – the highest since March 17 – with the same number again making a booking on Saturday.

Some 17,700 bookings on Saturday for the BioNTech jab was one of the best showings within a four-week span for the German-made vaccine, the Post found.

The uptick in vaccination rate came as the city confirmed one imported coronavirus case from Indonesia on Saturday. The patient, a 42-year-old woman, arrived on Friday last week and tested positive for the virus on her seventh day of quarantine in a hotel.

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Fewer than five preliminary-positive cases were reported on Saturday. The latest confirmed infection pushed the official tally to 11,837, with 210 related deaths.

Officials hailed the vaccination incentives dangled by the business sector, including free flight tickets and the lottery grand prize of a Kwun Tong home, with the health minister warning that those who adopted a wait-and-see attitude would not be eligible for a potential booster shot if they had not taken their first two doses.

The Sino Group, Ng Teng Fong Charitable Foundation and Chinese Estates Holdings announced on Friday afternoon they were sponsoring a lucky draw for a one-bedroom flat measuring 449 sq ft at the Grand Central project in Kwun Tong. The sponsors will also donate 20 prizes with a prepaid or credit card value of HK$100,000 each.

“The pandemic situation in Hong Kong is pretty stable, with government advisers saying that we have roughly reached ‘zero infections’,” Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan Siu-chee told a radio show on Saturday.

“There are still people in the wait-and-see process. In this regard, the government welcomes any intervention that is able to motivate them.

“Our main focus is to prevent the fifth wave of infections from happening, as you can see the situation could suddenly turn bad in other jurisdictions,” she said. “While the government will do its best in preventing transmissions, residents should also get vaccinated. Countries with high inoculation rates such as Israel and Britain have a relatively stable situation.”

With more than 2 million vaccine doses available in the city, the government has started offering jabs to non-residents. Around 40,000 or so mainland visitors holding a two-way permit travel document, as well as some 13,000 torture claimants and refugees, will be eligible for the jabs. Bookings for the visitors opened on Friday in post offices. Both vaccine types available in the city are up for grabs.

Around 4,000 eligible mainland visitors made their bookings through post offices on Friday, but authorities said these numbers were not added to the overall online booking figures published.

However, such permit holders, once vaccinated, will be included in the city’s inoculation total later.

Sinovac bookings hit 10,500 appointments on both Friday and Saturday. The last peak was on March 17 with 15,000 reservations, but by April and May, that figure had gradually dropped to around 2,000 to 4,000 daily. The lowest was 1,800 bookings on April 11.

For the BioNTech jabs, Saturday’s 17,700 reservations easily topped recent figures. Daily bookings for April had hovered beyond 10,000, but that figure dropped by mid-May, with only around 6,000 reservations on some days.

Chan reiterated that the slow vaccination rate would affect the purchase of the next batch of vaccines, as there was still a shortfall globally, and pharmaceutical companies could give priority to other countries or regions. It was not clear if the next procurement round would be enough for all Hongkongers, she added.

“I have noticed that there are people who have not been vaccinated and are waiting for the next round, but they will then not be eligible for any booster shots if they have not had their two doses,” Chan warned.

The health minister added that authorities would need consent from drug manufacturers on what to do with unused shots that would expire in the coming months, while the government was also considering delaying or even cancelling scheduled vaccine deliveries and donating surpluses to countries in need.

Hong Kong still has around 998,000 doses of the Sinovac vaccine and around 744,000 BioNTech shots in storage.

“It is now the critical time for vaccination. We urge the public to get their first dose of vaccines before the end of August,” Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip Tak-kuen told a separate programme. “There have been no local cases in Hong Kong for several consecutive days, but we cannot rule out a possible outbreak at any time. The next three months will be key, and it is necessary to establish a prevention barrier through vaccination.”

Hong Kong is far below its target rate of vaccinating 70 per cent of the 7.5 million population to achieve herd immunity. As of Saturday, the take-up rate for a first shot was 19.1 per cent and 13.2 per cent for both doses. The inoculation drive started on February 26.

The city has ordered 7.5 million jabs each from Sinovac and BioNTech and they would be delivered in phased shipments.

There have been more concerns over potential wastage of the BioNTech vaccine because of its shorter shelf life at six months from production. The Sinovac vaccine can be stored for up to a year.