Addressing yesterday evening’s press conference about Macau’s novel coronavirus situation, Tai Wa Hou, a clinical director of the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre, said that a person – whose gender, age, resident status and nationality were not revealed – who had failed to undergo a COVID-19 test during last week’s three-day mass nucleic acid testing (NAT) drive has continued to refuse to be tested for the novel coronavirus after being located by the police yesterday, and has told the authorities that he or she’d rather undergo 14 days of quarantine than get tested for COVID-19.
According to Tai, the recusant has not revealed the reason for continuing to refuse to be tested for COVID-19 after repeated explanations and persuasive attempts by the authorities.
Tai also said that the authorities cannot order those who refuse to undergo a COVID-19 nucleic acid test to get tested because it involves a medical procedure.
The Health Bureau (SSM) said on Monday that 55 people in Macau who had failed to undergo a nucleic acid test during last week’s citywide testing programme had continued to refuse to be tested for COVID-19 as of Monday afternoon – despite having repeatedly been asked by the bureau to get tested. The bureau said on Monday that if they had continued to refuse to get tested for COVID-19 by Monday night, it would ask the police to locate them and take them to testing sites where they would have to get tested and stay there until their negative result has been confirmed.
During yesterday evening’s press conference, Tai said that 16 out of the 55 initial refuseniks had finally undergone a COVID-19 test by Monday night, because of which the police took action to locate the remaining 39 people yesterday.
As of yesterday afternoon, Tai said, the police had managed to locate 35 out of the 39 people. Tai said that 34 of the 35 people had agreed to get tested after being located by the police, but one had continued to refuse to be tested for COVID-19 despite repeated explanations and persuasive attempts by the police.
Tai said that yesterday afternoon the police were still trying to locate the remaining four out of the 39 people.
Consequently, Tai said that the lone refuser was required to undergo 14 days of medical observation at a quarantine facility, to which he or she had agreed. “The person is going through official formalities for 14 days of medical observation,” Tai said yesterday evening.
The Health Bureau said on Monday that those who continue to refuse to be tested for COVID-19 after being located by the police are required to sign a consent document confirming that they are willing to undergo 14 days of medical observation at a quarantine facility. If they refuse to sign the document, the bureau said on Monday, the authorities will impose “mandatory quarantine” on them.
Tai said that the recusant had not elaborated on the reason for refusing to be tested for COVID-19. Nevertheless, Tai said, the person has clearly told the authorities that he or she would rather go into 14 days of quarantine than undergo a COVID-19 nucleic acid test.
Tai said that the person had persistently refused to be tested for COVID-19 after the police had patiently explained to him or her that undergoing a nucleic acid test is simple. Tai said that the authorities have no choice but to “respect” his or her decision as the authorities cannot order anyone in Macau to undergo a COVID-19 test.
Tai explained that the authorities cannot order those who refuse to undergo a nucleic acid test to get tested as it is a medical procedure. Considering that the case – i.e. not being tested for COVID-19 – would impose a health risk to the community, the authorities have to carry out special measures on how to deal with the refuser, Tai said, adding that as the person had agreed to undergo 14 days of quarantine, the Health Bureau has decided to transfer him or her to quarantine for 14 days “as a measure of replacing the COVID-19 nucleic acid test”.
‘Substitute’ measures during quarantine period
Reporters asked whether the refusenik will have to undergo any nucleic acid tests during his or her 14-day quarantine period. Tai replied that indeed all quarantinees are required to undergo a number of COVID-19 nucleic acid tests during their medical observation period. Concerning the refuser, Tai said, the Health Bureau will continue trying to persuade him or her to be tested for COVID-19 during the quarantine period.
According to Tai, the Health Bureau will ask the recusant whether he or she is refusing to be tested for COVID-19 because he or she does not want to have a sample collected via a nasopharyngeal swab or an oropharyngeal swab. If the person continues to refuse to undergo a COVID-19 nucleic acid test, the bureau will ask whether he or she would agree to undergo a serology test – i.e. a blood sample collection for COVID-19 antibody testing, according to Tai, who said that if the person also refuses to undergo an antibody test, the bureau would study the possible implementation of certain “substitute” measures, such as extending the length of his or her quarantine period.
The government’s three-day mass NAT drive started at 9 a.m. on Wednesday last week after Macau confirmed four COVID-19 cases the day before, a family of four comprising a couple and their two children, a schoolboy and a schoolgirl. It was Macau’s first citywide disease testing in its history.
A total of 614,465 people were tested for COVID-19 during the 72-hour citywide NAT drive, which ended at 9 a.m. on Saturday last week. Moreover, 101,786 people were tested outside the mass testing programme between Tuesday and Saturday last week. The results of all 716,251 were confirmed as being negative.
Those who failed to undergo the free test before 9 a.m. on Saturday last week were required to undergo a paid test at the city’s five regular NAT stations before 9 p.m. on Saturday last week, otherwise their Macau Health Code colour would become yellow.
NAT cert for air passengers leaving Macau valid for 48 hours
Meanwhile, the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre announced in a statement last night that with immediate effect air passengers leaving Macau must present a NAT certificate confirming that they have tested negative within the past 48 hours.
Since late last month, air passengers from the mainland have already had to present a NAT certificate confirming that they have tested negative for COVID-19 within the past 48 hours when boarding a Macau-bound plane, a change from the previous seven-day-validity requirement.
From 6 a.m. yesterday, the validity of the NAT result for Guangdong-Macau travellers has been increased to 48 hours from 12 hours.
After the four-member family cluster infected with the Delta variant was confirmed on Tuesday last week, the validity of a negative result for Guangdong-Macau travellers was shortened to 12 hours from the previous time of seven days.
State of immediate prevention terminated
Meanwhile, Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng terminated the “state of immediate prevention”, which was declared on Tuesday last week when the COVID-19 family cluster was confirmed, at 10 p.m. yesterday.
The state of immediate prevention was then declared by Ho which was based on a risk assessment by the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre, which then said that Macau was facing the risk of being affected by a community outbreak of the novel coronavirus.
As of 4 p.m. yesterday, 536,063 doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been administered to 295,966 people in Macau, comprising 54,081 who had received their first jab and 241,885 who had received their second jab.
Macau’s COVID-19 vaccination rate stood at 43.4 percent as of 4 p.m. yesterday – i.e. over 40 percent of the population has received at least one jab.
A total of 15 adverse events were reported in the past 24 hours (until 4 p.m. yesterday). The total number of adverse events since the start of the vaccination drive stood at 2,267, or 0.42 percent of the total number of jabs, including seven serious cases.
200,000 Sinopharm jabs on the way
Meanwhile, Tai also announced during yesterday’s press conference that the manufacturer in Beijing notified the Macau government yesterday morning that it is delivering another 200,000 doses of Sinopharm inactivated vaccine to Macau. The doses are expected to arrive in Macau – by land – tomorrow.
Tai also said that the number of people getting COVID-19 jabs per day has increased to around 5,000 in recent days, a 25-percent increase from 3,000 to 4,000 per day before the COVID-19 family cluster was confirmed early last week. Tai said that the 25-percent increase was lower than what the Health Bureau had expected as residents should have been much more eager to be inoculated against COVID-19 in the wake of the Delta variant family cluster.
Meanwhile, the centre announced in a statement yesterday afternoon that from now anyone who suspects that they might have been infected with COVID-19 can book a free nucleic acid test on https://app.ssm.gov.mo/mandatoryrnatestbook. The link is also available on the Macau Health Code system.
The free test is available at the Taipa Ferry Terminal testing station, the Macau Forum testing station, and the NAT station in the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre.
Since early this month, only those with a fever could book a free COVID-19 test on this link.
However, the test result will not appear on the respective person’s Macau Health Code system so that it cannot be used for crossing the mainland-Macau border.
Tai Wa Hou, one of the three clinical directors of the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre, addresses yesterday’s press conference about the city’s novel coronavirus (COVID-19) situation. Photo: GCS
