Addressing yesterday’s regular press conference about Macau’s novel coronavirus situation, Luís Gomes, acting chief of the Non-Tertiary Education Department of the Education and Youth Development Bureau (DSEDJ), said that the government is studying the feasibility of requiring all athletes at inter-school sports competitions and all participants in the annual summer activities to have been vaccinated against COVID-19.
Gomes said that many local schools and education associations have been asking the government to require all students participating in activities and events that take place outside their respective schools to have been inoculated against the novel coronavirus, a practice similar to the COVID-19 vaccination requirements imposed by international sports events around the world.
Gomes said that his bureau is studying the suggestions raised by the local schools and education associations and the implementation of a possible measure that would require all participants of inter-school sports competitions and the government’s annual summer activities to have been vaccinated against COVID-19. In addition, Gomes said, his bureau will constantly listen to opinions from the Health Bureau (SSM), the education sector, and other associations involved in the organisation of local sports events, before rolling out the measure next month at the earliest.
Gomes pledged that after the government has decided to roll out new COVID-19 prevention measures for students participating in activities that take place outside their respective schools, it will give the affected students sufficient time to comply with the measures.
Only 6 people permanently unable to get COVID-19 jabs
Meanwhile, Leong Iek Hou, who heads the Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Division of the Health Bureau (SSM), said during yesterday’s press conference that since the launch of Macau’s COVID-19 vaccination programme early last year, her bureau has issued 7,557 certificates confirming the respective holders’ unsuitability for COVID-19 vaccinations, but the vast majority of them have only been unfit to be inoculated against the novel coronavirus for a period of time, not permanently, due to certain health reasons, such as pregnancy, uncontrolled hypertension, fever, and having been inoculated with another vaccine within the past 14 days. Leong noted that those who are temporarily unable to be vaccinated against COVID-19 due to certain health reasons will be able to be inoculated after the respective reasons no longer exist.
Leong said that the Health Bureau has only issued six people with a certificate confirming that they are permanently unable to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as they have an acute allergy to COVID-19 vaccines – the only absolute contraindication to COVID-19 vaccinations. The Health Bureau only issues a certificate for COVID-19 jab unsuitability with a permanent validity to those with an absolute contraindication to COVID-19 inoculations, according to Leong.
Most public servants have been fully vaccinated
Meanwhile, Leong also said she believed that most of Macau’s public servants have been fully (twice) vaccinated against COVID-19.
Leong noted that since February 21 this year, all public servants must either display a certificate confirming that they have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 at least 14 days prior, i.e., having developed basic fully immunity, or present a nucleic acid test (NAT) certificate confirming a negative COVID-19 result valid for seven days.
Leong said that according to data provided by the Public Administration and Civil Service Bureau (SAFP) on February 21 when the so-called full-jab-or-test measure started, 3,889 public servants needed to present an NAT certificate because of not having been fully inoculated against the novel coronavirus. Leong said that as the measure has been implemented for over a month, she believed that many of them have meanwhile been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
According to the latest official statistics, Macau had around 32,000 public servants at the end of 2020. The number of public servants is understood to have remained almost unchanged since last year.
A jab-or-test measure was started for public servants in October last year, but they were only required to have received at least one COVID-19 jab or present an NAT certificate at that time. The measure was upgraded to the current version on February 21 which requires public servants to have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or present an NAT certificate.
Leong also said that the COVID-19 vaccination rate amongst those working for the Health Bureau now exceeds 90 percent.
Concerted efforts, not ‘lucky land’
Meanwhile, Leong also reaffirmed that Macau is facing a “critical” landscape of preventing the novel coronavirus from entering Macau due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreaks in Hong Kong and certain areas in the mainland, because of which Macau is facing a “constantly increasing” risk of suffering COVID-19 community transmissions.
Replying to a question from a reporter, Leong said that Macau has so far been doing a “good” job in guarding against imported cases and the possibility of new locally transmitted cases, thanks to the concerted efforts of all segments of Macau’s civil society and residents in general, pointing out that “everyone” in Macau has persevered in properly wearing a facemask, and residents in general have been willing to get inoculated against COVID-19 and complying with the government’s various other COVID-19 measures. Consequently, Leong said, Macau has had its good achievements in COVID-19 prevention, not just because it is, according to local folk belief, a “lucky land”.
In addition, Leong also gave an example illustrating the importance of properly wearing a facemask when out and about. Leong noted that a female student enrolled in the public University of Macau (UM) was in the same lift as a man in a building in Zhuhai last month, and the student was identified as a COVID-19 close contact after the man was confirmed as a COVID-19 patient in the middle of last month. Leong noted that the man, who had a very high viral load, was not wearing a facemask in the lift but luckily the student was wearing one.
Leong said that the female student has not been diagnosed with COVID-19 after completing 14 days of medical observation at a quarantine facility in Macau, adding that the case shows the importance of properly wearing a facemask.
According to Leong, the findings of research studies worldwide indicate that if a healthy person is interacting with someone carrying the novel coronavirus and neither are wearing a facemask, the healthy person will run a possibility of over 90 percent of being infected with COVID-19. If both are properly wearing a facemask, the healthy person will only have a very low risk of being infected, Leong said.
Leong again urged unjabbed residents to get inoculated against COVID-19 now when Macau is not affected by COVID-19 transmissions, with the aim of reducing the possible number of serious conditions and deaths in case Macau is hit by a COVID-19 outbreak.
80-pct jab rate amongst those in retirement homes
Meanwhile, Leong also said that as of yesterday afternoon Macau’s COVID-19 vaccination rates stood at 74.9 percent amongst those aged between 60 and 69, 65.1 percent amongst those aged from 70 to 79, and 40 percent amongst those aged 80 or over. Leong said that while the jab rate amongst senior citizens has been increasing over recent weeks, but the rate is still “not ideal”.
Leong said that the situation in Hong Kong has indicated that those living in retirement homes are particularly hard hit by the citywide COVID-19 outbreak and that unvaccinated senior citizens will normally suffer a serious condition or die from the novel coronavirus disease.
Leong said that around 80 percent of those living in Macau’s 24 retirement homes and other social service residential facilities for senior citizens have received at least one COVID-19 jab. Among the around 20 percent who have not been inoculated, 37 said that they did not want to be vaccinated against COVID-19, while 208, who were unable to express their willingness to get jabs, had not been vaccinated because their family members disagreed.
Leong said that both laboratory research data and the “real-world” data from Hong Kong have clearly indicated that COVID-19 vaccinations are effective in reducing the risk of suffering a serious condition and dying from the novel coronavirus disease, senior citizens in particular. Leong said that the government will continue trying to persuade the unvaccinated senior citizens or their family members to change their minds.
Leong Iek Hou (right), who heads the Health Bureau’s (SSM) Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Division, speaks during yesterday’s press conference about the city’s COVID-19 situation, as Luís Gomes, acting chief of the Education and Youth Development Bureau’s (DSEDJ) Non-Tertiary Education Department, looks on. Photo: Tony Wong
