TOPLINE
- 3,843 new cases [861 cases by nucleic acid tests (15 imported + 846 locally acquired); 2,982 cases by rapid antigen tests (84 imported + 2,898 locally acquired)]
- As at Jan 17, 124, 191, 892, 6,353 and 940 persons received their first, second, third, fourth and fifth dose of vaccine respectively; a cumulative total of 20,577,539 doses have been administered
- new cases tested positive by nucleic acid tests: 861 (15 imported + 846 locally acquired)
- total cases tested positive by nucleic acid tests: 1,208,434
- new cases tested positive by rapid antigen tests: 2,982 (84 imported + 2,898 locally acquired)
- total cases tested positive by rapid antigen tests: 1,631,779
- deaths: 12,909 [during the fifth wave (since December 31, 2021): 12,696]
14-day rolling sitrep of new cases (most recent figure first, in bracket: “local cases / imported cases”)
- 3,843 ( 3,744 / 99 ); 4,653 ( 4,529 / 124 ); 6,261 ( 6,091 / 170 ); 7,749 (7,563 / 186 ); 8,260 ( 8,032 / 228 ); 9,208 ( 8,916 / 292 ); 9,279 ( 9,017 / 262 ); 9,379 ( 9,152 / 227 ); 11,641 ( 11,318 / 323 ); 14,113 ( 13,682 / 431 ); 15,850 ( 15,341 / 509 ); 19,722 ( 19,527 / 195 ); 18,422 ( 18,258 / 164 ); 16,423 ( 16,022 / 401 )
Provisional analysis of the first 12,330 reported death cases in the 5th wave:
- Vaccination history
- Received 4 doses (reached 14 days): 2%
- Received 3 doses (reached 14 days): 12%
- Received 2 doses (reached 14 days): 13%
- Received 1 dose (reached 14 days): 13%
- Unvaccinated: 60%
- Over 95% fatal cases were elderly aged 60 years or above; 48% were residential care home residents; 93% were with known chronic diseases
- Receiving 3 doses of any vaccines greatly reduces death risk especially in the older age group
- As at Jan 17:
* 124 persons received their first dose of vaccine; a cumulative total of 6,911,799 persons have received their first vaccine dose, making up 94.6% of the population aged 3 or above
* 191 persons received their second dose of vaccine; a cumulative total of 6,791,834 persons have received their second vaccine dose, making up 93.1% of the population aged 3 or above
* 892 persons received their third dose of vaccine; a cumulative total of 5,824,738 persons have received their third vaccine dose, making up 83.6% of the population aged 12 or above
* 6,353 persons received their fourth dose of vaccine; a cumulative total of 1,003,177 persons have received their fourth vaccine dose
* 940 persons received their fifth dose of vaccine; a cumulative total of 45,991 persons have received their fifth vaccine dose
- a total of 20,577,539 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered for members of the public
Considering that more activities may be held in residential care homes (RCHs) during the Lunar New Year, the waning protection by vaccination over time, that confirmed cases involving RCH residents and staff are still being reported from time to time, and the persistent threat posed by the winter surge of seasonal influenza, it is necessary for the Government to keep driving up the vaccination rate of RCH residents. As such, the Government further extended the outreach vaccination service special programme for RCHs for four weeks till February 17. Same as the current arrangement, medical teams will visit RCHs at least once a week to provide outreach vaccination service, with a view to administering vaccines to every resident who is due to get vaccinated (the fourth dose in particular). In addition, medical teams will also provide seasonal influenza vaccination concurrently for residents to attain dual protection. A special allowance will be offered to medical teams participating in the special programme to cover the additional manpower and transportation costs arising from the extension of the programme.
Arrangements for COVID-19 vaccination venues during Lunar New Year period23 Private Clinic COVID-19 Vaccination Stations (PCVSs) under the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme will provide vaccination services on Lunar New Year's Eve (January 21), while a small number of PCVSs will provide vaccination services for eligible persons with prior bookings during the Lunar New Year period. The Community Vaccination Centres, the Community Vaccination Stations and the Children Community Vaccination Centres will be closed from January 21 to 25, and resume services on January 26.
CE meets new Liaison Office DirectorDuring the meeting, Mr Lee said the Hong Kong society has embarked on the path towards normalcy and is back on the international stage. With the strong support of the Central Government, normal travel between Hong Kong and the Mainland is resuming in a progressive, orderly and comprehensive manner, and frequent exchanges of people, businesses and tourism will resume. The HKSAR Government, while uniting different sectors of the community to focus on development, will also be dedicated to addressing concerns and difficulties of members of the public in their daily lives so as to enhance their sense of well-being and maintain Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability.
Arrangements for Lunar New Year fairsA spokesman for the FEHD said, "In response to the Government's latest anti-epidemic measures, related arrangements at the LNY fairs have been adjusted. The measures include that all participants must wear masks when entering or staying at the fair venues, that stall operators must provide in their stalls anti-septic hand sanitisers for use by the patrons at all times during business hours, and that they are also required to carry out cleaning and disinfection of their stalls on a daily basis using 1:99 diluted household bleach. We have already informed the stall licensees of the adjusted anti-epidemic measures in writing."
Government follows up on positive results of sewage surveillance and appeals to residents to undergo virus testing