Leave Scarce Flu Jabs For The Vulnerable, Urges Govt

The government is calling on the public to reserve influenza vaccines for high-risk groups, as soaring global demand is creating a "tight supply".

The director of health, Dr Constance Chan, said they are trying to reach various pharmaceutical companies to get enough additional doses to meet an expected surge in demand, as a rise in Covid cases is also predicted during winter.

The government admitted that it is yet to secure the 100,000 extra doses of vaccine it has promised to private doctors who are taking part in the government programme to provide subsidised jabs to people in high-risk groups.

“We ordered [more] doses additionally. We have ordered, and hope that they could arrive by mid-November,” Chan said.

A government press release issued on Thursday stated that around 85,000 doses would arrive in the city by mid or late November.

The government would like to purchase more vaccine, but “this wish might not be realised”, Chan said.

Due to the expected shortage, the health director urged the public to leave the subsidised vaccines for high-risk groups, like those aged 50 or above, children and pregnant women.

She said people who do not fall into such categories could keep the flu away by practising good hygiene and ensuring healthy living conditions.

The government also dismissed concerns about reports that some people died in South Korea after receiving flu jabs.

“The vaccines concerned mainly came from some Korean manufacturers, and some European company. That European company also supplies vaccines to Hong Kong, but we have checked with our local supplier of that French company, and they have confirmed that the concerned batch in Korea is not imported in Hong Kong,” she said.