Hotels Not Great For Quarantining People: Govt

Officials have rejected calls for the government to provide hotel rooms for people ordered to go into quarantine after returning from overseas, saying such environments may not be ideal for those isolating themselves over Covid-19 fears.

A government adviser on infectious diseases, Professor David Hui, on Saturday added his voice to calls for hotels to be used for quarantine purposes, warning that "quite a number" of people returning to the SAR from Europe could be bringing the virus back with them.

Public health expert Dr Leung Chi-chiu had the same advice for the government earlier this week, saying that allowing people to stay at home could put any family members at risk of catching the virus.

However, Deputy Secretary for Health Daniel Cheng said the government had looked at using hotels, but found this would pose a number of challenges.

"We have considering using hotels as quarantine centres, but there are some problems that are not easy to solve, such as the ventilation and central air-con systems," Cheng said.

"For example, many experts believe that the air-con and ventilation system on the Princess Diamond cruise ship was one of the reasons why there was a huge outbreak there. So we need to pay attention to that. Many hotels also have carpets, and we [would also] need to handle this problem."

Cheng said another concern would be having the right people on hand to help those in quarantine with any issues that crop up, even problems as minor as a leaking tap.

"Our past experience was that even if hotels are willing to hand over the venue as a quarantine centre, they are only giving you the place, not the manpower," he said, adding that some staff might not be willing to help those in quarantine.

On Thursday, tourism sector lawmaker Yiu Sze-wing said some hotels were willing to provide rooms for people to be quarantined. He said the hotel industry initially had concerns about taking in people who might be infected, but plummeting occupancy rates had prompted a rethink.