No need to bring back mask mandate, social-distancing curbs despite rising Covid cases, Hong Kong health minister says

Hong Kong does not need to bring back its mask mandate and other social-distancing curbs even though Covid-19 and flu cases are on the rise, the city’s health minister has said, adding that reintroducing the face covering directive would have a negative impact on society.

But Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau on Saturday also warned that the flu season, which began this month, had not peaked yet and it typically took 12 to 16 weeks for it to subside.

During a television interview, Lo also said Covid-19 cases were rising, with respiratory tract nucleic acid screening showing a positive result in almost four out of every 100 tests, marking a fourfold increase from the lowest point when less than one positive case was detected per 100 samples.

The trend matched with the situation observed at public hospitals, he said.

“All of the [Covid-19] figures have increased by about 30 to 50 per cent,” he said, adding the number of daily confirmed cases might have already reached 10,000, outnumbering a small peak in infections recorded last August.

Lo also said reintroducing the mask mandate would result in social and economic costs.

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“The mask mandate, a legislative means, would create an adverse impact on social and economic activities. If we can use other methods to deal with [the rise in cases], we will not consider this method for the time being,” he said.

Immunity against Covid-19 in the city was stronger than before, Lo added, saying more than 95 per cent of residents had been infected and vaccinated and the community and hospitals had developed a stronger ability to cope with the pandemic.

“Even if there is a peak in spring and summer, we can still cope with it. There is no need for some non-medical social-distancing measures, such as reintroducing the mask mandate,” he said.

Lo said Arcturus, a new Covid subvariant, had been detected in the community but the ratio was low, as less than 3 per cent of the virus was found in sewage samples.

“The ratio is relatively low but it is rising. We will monitor it closely,” he said.

First detected in January, Arcturus, known as XBB. 1.16, is an Omicron subvariant. It is listed as a “variant under monitoring” by the World Health Organization.

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According to the WHO, there has been an upwards global trend in Arcturus cases, but there are currently no reports suggesting increased infection severity.

Lo said city residents had weaker immunity against the flu after wearing masks for three years. He pointed out the number of hospitalised cases and deaths had increased, but they were not as high as those recorded in previous years during the flu season.

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According to our experience, the flu season takes 12 to 16 weeks to subside,” he said, adding the city was in its third week and the medical system was able to cope with it.

Professor Ivan Hung Fan-ngai, a top infectious disease expert at the University of Hong Kong, said during another radio programme that the flu season would peak in one to two weeks, while it might take eight weeks for Covid-19 cases to reach the highest point.