Hong Kong to expand 'vaccine bubble' from February 24

Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Tuesday announced that the government will expand the "vaccine bubble" from February 24 to cover more places and residents must have at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to enter the premises.

Claire Huang, writing in The Straits Times said that the city's vaccination rate spiked on Monday, with almost 18,000 receiving their first dose, compared with the 1,000 to 2,000 jabs administered daily previously.

So far, 73 per cent of the eligible population have had one jab. The spike in daily numbers came after Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan said last Friday that the bubble was to be expanded to cover cinemas, gyms and beauty centres before Chinese New Year on February 1, reported The Strait Times.

Claire Huang further said that the move will bar unvaccinated Hong Kong residents from places including libraries, museums and schools, as officials seek to keep local COVID-19 cases at zero and reopen its borders with China.

The bubble was rolled out about six months ago to the food and beverage (F&B) industry, as well as places deemed high risks such as bars and pubs, clubhouses and karaoke lounges.

"At the moment, there is no plan to extend the application to shopping malls or private workplaces because the implications will be far-reaching," Lam said.

"In order for Hong Kong to battle the pandemic and for people's lives to return to normal and to create favourable conditions for border reopening, we must boost our vaccination rate," said Lam.

She said the bubble plan will be implemented in phases, with staff at government buildings and schools first to be required to get jabbed, reported The Strait Times.

Local reports said F&B representatives had met with officials on Monday afternoon and had urged them to implement the plan only after the festivities so that the industry will not lose 20 to 30 per cent of the business.

Hong Kong officials are trying to maintain the city's zero local cases record and reopen borders with the mainland, amid fears of a possible Omicron outbreak, reported The Strait Times.

On Tuesday, Lam admitted that the recent Omicron cluster linked to an imported case had put a dent in long-awaited plans to reopen borders with the mainland.

Lam said that the situation is manageable and there are no plans to tighten social distancing rules or to suspend classes.

So far, Hong Kong has recorded more than 12,600 cases of COVID-19 and 213 deaths - numbers that are among the lowest in the world.

( With inputs from ANI )