COVID-19 outbreak tally rises to 572, 5 more cases in nursing home, oldest patient is 100, mandatory self-tests for 2 more days
The latest tally of Macau’s current COVID-19 outbreak has reached 572, the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre announced yesterday.
The government also announced that five more COVID-19 positive cases were detected yesterday in the Obra das Mães nursing home for senior citizens in Ha Van district, comprising a 100-year-old senior citizen and four staff.
The government also announced yesterday that a mandatory rapid antigen test (RAT) for COVID-19 (self-test) will continue today and tomorrow. Those failing to do so will have their Macau Health Code colour turn yellow.
According to a statement by the centre yesterday morning, 88 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases were reported between 00:00 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, raising the outbreak tally from 484 as of Tuesday night to 572 as of Wednesday night.
The current outbreak’s latest tally of 572 was up by 39 compared with the figure of 533 announced by the centre during Wednesday evening’s press conference.
Leong Iek Hou, who heads the Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Division of the Health Bureau (SSM), announced case details of the outbreak’s latest tally during yesterday evening’s daily press conference about the viral menace.
According to Leong, 180 of the 572 cases have been classified as confirmed COVID-19 cases as they have come down with symptoms, while the other 392 cases have been classified as asymptomatic cases as they had not developed any symptoms. The 572 COVID-19 carriers are aged between eight months and 100.
Leong also said that 48 of the 88 new local cases reported on Wednesday were detected in the community, while the other 40 were detected among COVID-19 carriers subject to control measures such as lockdowns and quarantine.
Leong said that a new cluster was detected yesterday, raising the latest number of identified clusters to 12.
When asked by reporters during yesterday evening’s press conference, Leong said that 35 preliminary positive cases had been reported yesterday shortly before the press conference.
5 more COVID-19 cases at nursing home in Ha Van
Meanwhile, Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) official Tang Kit Fong announced during yesterday’s press conference details of the five new COVID-19 cases in the nursing home for senior citizens in Ha Van district, which is run by the Macanese welfare organisation Mothers’ Work (known as Obra das Mães in Portuguese).
Ha Van is the Cantonese name for the Praia do Manduco neighbourhood in the Inner Harbour area near Barra.
The five new cases came after the government announced on Wednesday that three COVID-19 cases had been detected in the nursing home, comprising two staff and a 94-year-old chronically ill woman.
Tang said yesterday that the five new COVID-19 cases comprise a 100-year-old senior citizen living in the nursing home and four staff members working there. The centenarian is Macau’s oldest COVID-19 patient.
Tang underlined that all five people had been staying in the nursing home without leaving the premises since Saturday last week when the implementation of a “closed-loop management” measure started there.
Tang also said that the 100-year-old senior citizen, whose gender was not identified, has been transferred to the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre for isolation treatment.
Tang noted that after the detection of the first three cases, the government has required all staff and senior citizens living in the nursing home to undergo two COVID-19 nucleic acid tests every day, which, she said, has enabled the government to detect the five latest cases yesterday.
All must self-test twice, today & tomorrow
Meanwhile, a Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre statement last night announced that everyone in Macau must take a rapid antigen test (RAT) for COVID-19 (self-test) today and another tomorrow.
The government rolled out its self-testing requirements a few days after the current COVID-19 outbreak was detected on June 18. Initially, those failing to do so did not have their Macau Health Code colour affected. However, in the latest two self-tests, which were carried out on Wednesday and yesterday, those failing to report their negative RAT result on the Health Bureau’s RAT results online declaration system would have their Macau Health Code colour turn yellow – i.e., the self-tests became mandatory on Wednesday.
Last night’s announcement means that the mandatory self-tests will continue for two more days, one today and another tomorrow.
After testing themselves for COVID-19 with a rapid antigen test kit, everyone will have to report their results on: https://app.ssm.gov.mo/generalrat
The link is also available on the frontpage of the Macau Health Code system.
Last night’s statement reaffirmed that those who have reported a positive RAT result on the system will have their Macau Health Code colour turn red. Those who have tested positive for COVID-19 in a rapid antigen test and those living with them are not allowed to leave home, and they should call an ambulance by phoning 119, 120 or 2857 2222 that will take them to the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre for a nucleic acid test, regardless of whether they have come down with a fever or other respiratory symptoms, the statement reaffirmed.
Last night’s statement said that those failing to report a negative RAT result on the system today will have their Macau Health Code colour turn yellow from 00:00 a.m. tomorrow. Those whose health code colour has become yellow due to this reason will have it return to green after reporting a negative RAT result on the system by 11:59 p.m. tomorrow.
According to last night’s statement, those still failing to report a negative RAT result on the system by 11:59 p.m. tomorrow will have their health code colour “locked” as yellow from 00:00 a.m. on Sunday, in which case they will have to undergo a nucleic acid test at their own expense in order for their health code colour to return to green.
RAT statistics
During yesterday evening’s press conference, Leong said that 625,313 people reported their RAT results on the Health Bureau’s RAT results online declaration system on Wednesday, the highest daily record since the launch of the government’s self-testing measures, which she said indicated that residents have been getting used to testing themselves for COVID-19 with an RAT kit and reporting a result on the system.
On Wednesday, Leong said, 37 people tested positive for COVID-19 in a rapid antigen test.
As of 3 p.m. yesterday, Leong said, 429,621 people had reported their RAT results on the system yesterday, 26 of whom had tested positive for COVID-19.
Medicine statistics
Meanwhile, Leong also said that during the current outbreak the Health Bureau has prescribed 55 COVID-19 patients or asymptomatic carriers antiviral medicines, including those with chronic diseases and senior citizens, who are subject to a higher risk of having their condition deteriorate resulting from COVID-19 infection. She noted that antiviral medicines aim to inhibit COVID-19 patients or carriers’ viral replication, which will then cause less harm to their physical health and that they will test negative for COVID-19 earlier.
Moreover, Leong also said that as of yesterday afternoon 214 COVID-19 patients or asymptomatic carriers staying at the city’s two isolation hotels had agreed to be prescribed traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs), comprising 157 at the England Marina Club Hotel and 57 at a tower of the Sheraton Grand hotel in Cotai.
The Sheraton Grand hotel consists of two towers. The other tower is being used as a COVID-19 quarantine hotel.
The Health Bureau announced on Wednesday that from today, the government will prescribe COVID-19 patients or asymptomatic carriers staying at isolation hotels Lianhua Qingwen pills or Huoxiang Zhengqi pills, traditional Chinese medicines used for COVID-19 treatment, if they opt for TCM medication.
19 pct of cases have not been vaccinated
Meanwhile, Leong also revealed that 109 of the current COVID-19 outbreak’s 572 cases as of Wednesday night have not been vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, while 23 have received one jab, 216 have received two jabs, and the remaining 224 have received three jabs.
Leong noted that the 109 unvaccinated cases account for 19 percent of the total of the 572, adding that it is a comparatively high unvaccinated rate among the cases considering Macau’s vaccination rate of around 90 percent.
Health code to display mass NAT results
Meanwhile, Leong also revealed that the Health Bureau will roll out a new function on the Macau Health Code system that enables code holders to check and display the results of COVID-19 tests carried out under the government’s mandatory citywide NAT drives.
Leong noted that some companies or organisations require their employees to display a negative COVID-19 NAT result. However, she said, results of tests carried out at self-pay stations will be available later than normal whenever the government is carrying out a citywide NAT drive. Therefore, she said, the government is aware that some residents and others in Macau want their negative results of tests carried out under the mass NAT drive also to be displayed on their Macau Health Code.
Leong said that the Health Bureau is still carrying out tests for the new function, adding that it will roll out the function after completing the tests.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Public Security Police (PSP) said on Wednesday that five PSP officers and three firefighters have been infected with COVID-19.
Leong Iek Hou, who heads the Health Bureau’s (SSM) Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Division, addresses yesterday’s press conference about the city’s current COVID-19 outbreak. Photo: Tony Wong
