Virus Tests To Almost Double To 7,000 A Day, CE Says

Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Thursday revealed that local authorities are aiming to significantly ramp up local Covid-19 testing as the city prepares for an influx of incoming travellers from the mainland and elsewhere.

In an online article, Lam said around 4,000 coronavirus tests have been conducted here per day in the first half of June – up more than 60 percent from May.

The “short-term target”, Lam said, is now to increase that further to 7,000 tests per day, as the territory continues working out details of a free-travel area with Guangdong and Macau.

The authorities are aiming to allow people who have recently tested negative for the coronavirus to travel freely within the three places, without the need to be quarantined.

A separate plan to establish a wider ‘travel bubble’ with overseas countries where the Covid-19 outbreak is deemed to be under control is also being pursued.

Lam said these plans mean “people’s demand for virus testing will increase significantly.”

She said the Department of Health is also liaising with some private institutions to help them enhance their testing capacity.

The CE noted that the coronavirus situation here has remained “generally stable”, with Hong Kong recording a total of 114 coronavirus cases last month, most of which involved Hong Kong residents returning from foreign countries, including Pakistan, the Philippines and India.

However, she said authorities were highly concerned about a local outbreak involving a dozen infections, linked to a Sha Tin public housing block.

“The intermittent emergence of local infection clusters reminds us once again of the presence of undetected infections in the community. It is imperative for the government to step up virus testing to keep the epidemic in check through early identification, early isolation and early treatment,” she wrote.

Lam also dismissed allegations that the government’s decision to maintain its ban on public gatherings of more than 50 people is aimed at suppressing large protests, reiterating that “political considerations absolutely play no part in such assessments”.

“As a matter of fact, a variety of large scale activities, including ball games, open concerts, and even the annual dragon boat races etc. are affected by the same restrictions,” she wrote.

She concluded by expressing her hope that the people of Hong Kong would cherish the stable epidemic situation which has allowed the city’s economy to revive.

She also said the coming national security law is aimed at plugging the loophole in the legal system and restoring social stability.