Coronavirus: Hong Kong may announce this month end to dreaded hotel quarantine
- Source says government may soon reveal its ending the ‘3+4’ arrangement provided talks among bureaus go smoothly
- Government pandemic adviser David Hui also suggests scrapping pre-boarding PCR test requirement for inbound travellers
Hong Kong may announce this month at the earliest that it will scrap hotel quarantine for overseas arrivals, the Post has learned, a step long sought by the business community and backed by a number of health experts.
A source familiar with official discussions on Sunday said authorities could reveal the relaxation soon provided talks among different government bureaus “went smoothly”, while another insider said an announcement that arrivals might simply be required to monitor their own health for a possible Covid-19 infection at home for seven days could be made this month.
As part of the city’s efforts to control infections, inbound travellers are also required to obtain a negative result on a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test 48 hours before boarding, but even this rule should be reviewed as they are screened upon arrival anyway, according to Professor David Hui Shu-cheong, who advises the government on its pandemic response.
“If the Covid-19 figures in the coming one to two weeks continue to decrease and our medical sector can bear with it, I believe the government should actively consider loosening [quarantine measures],” Hui told a TV programme, adding it was better to lift restrictions earlier rather than later.
The city’s daily Covid-19 infections continued to drop for the second consecutive day as authorities logged 7,322 cases, 132 of which were imported. It also recorded 23 more deaths, bringing the total number of related fatalities to 9,891.