By The SUN
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| CE Lee says he wants all restrictions lifted by the first quarter of 2023 (File) |
Hong Kong is poised to remove the last pandemic restrictions, including mask wearing and compulsory isolation for those who test positive for Covid-19, before April this year at the latest.
This was announced by
Chief Executive John Lee himself, during an interview with Hong Kong Commercial
Daily yesterday.
“My hope in 2023 is to
remove all Covid restrictions,” CE Lee was quoted as saying. He added he wanted
to see “all problems resolved in the first quarter” of the year.
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Unconfirmed reports
today said the government is considering lifting the remaining restrictions
after Chinese New Year, which runs from Jan 22 to Jan 25 this year.
Expected to go first
is the isolation order for confirmed patients, which under current rules,
requires them to isolate for at least five days, if they test negative on a
rapid antigen test on days 4 and 5 of their confinement.
Failure to abide by
this rule could result in them being prosecuted, and face a maximum fine of
$50,000 and up to six months’ imprisonment.
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Once the isolation
order is lifted, all quarantine and isolation facilities, as well as designated
Covid clinics and the Hospital Authority’s teleconsultation service, will
suspend their operations.
The mask mandate is
not expected to be lifted as quickly, with reports saying it will likely stay
until March or April this year.
CE Lee has said in
various interviews that masking would likely be the last measure to be lifted because
it has proven effective in preventing the spread of the coronavirus.
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Currently, anyone
caught not wearing a mask in public is liable to pay a fixed penalty ticket
costing $5,000.
Hong Kong gave
up most other restrictions in December, including forced quarantine for
closed contacts and requiring a negative result for a PCR test for all new
arrivals.
This was after China suddenly
dropped its zero Covid policy amid a new surge in infections, and reopened its
borders this month for the first time in three years.
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Meanwhile, reports say
the government is likely to remove its PCR test mandate for those traveling
between Hong Kong and the mainland ahead of the Lunar New Year which starts
this Sunday.
Legislators lobbying
for the scrapping of the test have reportedly told Chief Secretary Eric Chan
that Hongkongers returning from the mainland are having difficulty getting the
test done as many of the testing sites in China have been closed or their opening
hours shortened.
Currently, travelers
to and from the mainland will have to obtain a negative PCR test result up to
48 hours before crossing the border.
The planned lifting of
the test mandate is expected to apply even for those traveling to the mainland.
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