By The SUN
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| Britain has approved the use of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine (Reuters) |
Dr Sophia Chan said this at the Legislative Council today, Dec 2, as 103 new coronavirus cases were recorded in the city, including 39 more cases linked to a facility for the mentally disabled in Sheung Wan, and 14 from a construction site in Tseung Kwan O.
In
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| Pindutin para sa detalye |
Dr Chan told legislators that the government has already set
aside funds to procure two doses of the vaccine for all of
The first to get the vaccine are medical workers, elderly people, patients with chronic disease, and care homes staff.
Asked by pro-Beijing lawmakers if it was possible for the government to speed up the registration process for emergency use of mainland-approved vaccines, Chan said: “They will have to be safe, efficient and effective, but we do not rule out the possibility of emergency legislation in times of need,” she said.
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| Dr Chan says the vaccine to be given to residents must be safe & effective (RTHK) |
She made the pledge as the government is reportedly set to jack up the fixed penalty for violators of social-distancing rules to $10,000, from the current $2,000. The new measure is now said to be with the Department of Justice for review.
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Among the latest confirmed cases were those adding to the fast-growing clusters emerging from a Tseung Kwan O construction site and a care home for intellectually disabled people in Shau Kei Wan.
At today’s press briefing on the coronavirus contagion, the Centre for Health Protection said that of today’s 103 cases, 6 were imported, 82 were linked to previous infections, and 15 could not be traced.
About 70 preliminary-positive cases were also reported.
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| Tunghayan ang isa na namang kwentong Dream Love |
Of the six imported cases, three were returning residents
from
The Hospital Authority also disclosed that a 73-year-old
woman who recently arrived from
In reporting on the new infections, CHP’s Dr Chuang
Shuk-kwan mentioned in particular an apparent outbreak at a construction site
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Dr Chuang said that 14 more workers from the site were confirmed infected today, along with two relatives. They took the number of cases in the cluster to 19.
Also mentioned was the 39 new cases linked to the Fong Shu Chuen Day Activity Centre and Hostel, a facility for intellectually disabled people in Shau Kei Wan. There are now 44 cases in the cluster in total.
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| More cases have been found in the HK Sanatorium |
Another outbreak seems to have occurred at the high-end private hospital, Hong Kong Sanatorium, & Hospital in Happy Valley, where a patient who underwent dialysis there on Nov 24 was found infected.
The patient reportedly stayed in a single-person cubicle, next to the one occupied by another patient who tested positive for Covid-19 on Dec 1 and died on the same day.
A 65-year-old man who entered
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| Press for details |
The sudden surge in the number of cases has left isolation beds and wards at public hospitals more than 70% full, which Dr Lau Ka-hin of the Hospital Authority said was “worrying” as most patients need at least two weeks to recover from the disease.
To relieve the pressure on hospital staff, about 500 more beds and 20 isolation wards will be made available from tomorrow at the treatment facility in AsiaWorld-Expo, where patients with less severe or no symptoms are taken.
Dr Lau said 860 infected patients are now being treated in public hospitals and the AWE, among whom 17 are in critical condition, 11 are seriously ill, and 132 are stable.
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