Addressing yesterday’s press conference about Macau’s novel coronavirus (COVID-19) situation, Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) Deputy Director Daniel Tang Iok Wa announced that some 90 social service facilities of various kinds in the city will reopen in phases from next Wednesday.
Tang said that the social service facilities include family and community service centres, service centres for senior citizens, and youth outreach teams, involving some 1,000 staff members.
The city’s social service facilities – most of which are privately run – have been closed since the Chinese New Year holiday in late January in response to the COVID-19 epidemic. A small number of them resumed “limited” services in April. Since earlier this month, 19 social service facilities have gradually reopened, comprising six daycare centres for senior citizens, five rehabilitation centres for the intellectually disabled, as well as eight rehabilitation centres for the mentally ill and occupational rehabilitation centres for people with various forms of disabilities.
Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) Deputy Director Daniel Tang Yuk Wa (centre), Ma Chio Hong (right), who heads the Public Security Police’s (PSP) Operations and Communications Division, and Alvis Lo Iek Long, one of the three clinical directors of the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre pose during yesterday’s press conference about the city’s novel coronavirus (COVID-19) situation. Tang was newly appointed as one of the bureau’s two deputy directors last week.Photo: GCS
During yesterday’s press conference, Tang said that after consulting with the Health Bureau (SSM) and listening to the opinions of representatives from the city’s social service sector, his bureau has decided to allow the social service facilities to gradually reopen from next Wednesday.
“Considering their different nature, characteristics and the different groups of users they serve, the various types of social service facilities will resume their operations in phases, with the aim of reducing crowds and ensuring social distancing and their effective operations,” Tang said.
Tang said that the users or their family members can contact their social service facilities to ask them about the facilities’ reopening schedules and other details concerning their resumption of services.
Tang said that his bureau was helping the social service facilities prepare for their reopening, such as providing them with the official guidelines on their resumption of services. Tang said that his bureau would also help the facilities train their staff and carry out drills in preparation for their reopening. Tang also said that all staff of the social service facilities will have to be tested for the novel coronavirus before their respective resumption of services.
Tang underlined that his bureau will pay close attention to the development of the COVID-19 epidemic in Macau and elsewhere and the situation following the reopening of the social service facilities, and make possible adjustments to his bureau’s measures concerning the opening of the city’s social service facilities.
No new cases for 77 days
Meanwhile, Alvis Lo Iek Long, a clinical director of the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre, pointed out during yesterday’s press conference that Macau has not confirmed a new COVID-19 case for 77 consecutive days. All of Macau’s 45 COVID-19 patients have been discharged from hospital.
Meanwhile, Ma Chio Hong, who heads the Operations and Communications Division of the Public Security Police (PSP), announced during yesterday’s press conference that a new service point will be set up at the police’s Immigration Services Building in Pac On in Taipa where staff will help residents who are unable to use IT devices fill in the local government’s online application for the Zhuhai government’s quarantine waiver. The new service point will start operating tomorrow, Ma said.
Currently, the Social Welfare Bureau is running eight service points on its premises across the city where staff members help residents who do not know how to use the internet fill in the quarantine exemption’s online application.
Ma said that the new service points will open between 9 a.m. and 5:45 p.m. from Mondays to Thursdays, and from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Fridays. They are closed on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.
Since last Tuesday, the Zhuhai government has exempted up to 1,000 Macau residents per day from its 14-day quarantine requirement who need to cross the Macau-Zhuhai border for official purposes, business activities or other special reasons. Those who have been granted the quarantine waiver by the Zhuhai government can only cross the Macau-Zhuhai border via the Hengqin border checkpoint – which is open 24/7 – or the Macau-Zhuhai checkpoint on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HZMB) – which operates between 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
The Macau government launched the online application on June 11 for the exemption measure. Eligible Macau residents have to fill in the online application, which runs from 10 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. daily, five days prior to their intended entry into Zhuhai. The Macau government will first assess and approve or reject the applications, after which the Zhuhai government will “confirm” the list that the former has approved. The quarantine waiver is valid for seven days each time. Macau residents whose application for the quarantine exemption has been approved will have to undergo a nucleic acid test (NAT) – which has a validity of seven days – two days prior to their intended entry into Zhuhai.
