HK to consider use of Omicron-specific vaccine for third jab
Minister says city officials will still need to monitor the pandemic situation
Hong Kong will consider allowing residents to receive BioNTech’s Omicron-specific vaccine as their third coronavirus shot, according to the official overseeing the city’s Covid-19 inoculation drive.
Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan yesterday also said officials would still need to monitor the pandemic situation, while 11,600 residents registered for the second-generation vaccine after bookings opened on Sunday.
Government pandemic adviser Professor David Hui Shucheong told the Post the joint scientific committees would discuss whether to allow the new vaccine as a third dose within one to two weeks.
Secretary for Health Lo Chungmau said experts from the committees would rely on scientific data to make their decision.
“Experts will consider the supply of [the] new vaccine and the overall situation of pandemic development to make modifications,” Lo said.
William Chui Chun-ming, president of the Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Hong Kong, said he hoped the government would allow the elderly to receive the bivalent vaccine as their first to third shots, as he believed this would give them more of an incentive to get inoculated.
Authorities earlier said the German-made bivalent shot against Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5, the dominant strains locally, could be given as a fourth dose or a third one for recovered individuals from Thursday.
Those aged 60 or above may choose their preferred vaccine type on-site without booking online. But people who have not been vaccinated or received a suitable number of doses are not allowed to opt for the bivalent formula.
Asked on a radio programme whether authorities would allow residents to receive the second-generation vaccine for their first to third shot, Yeung said they could consider that possibility for the third jab. “We have listened to expert advice and will observe the overall situation again,” she said.
Yeung added the city’s inoculation rate was already high as most residents had received two doses of a vaccine, with 93 per cent and 82 per cent taking their second and third shots respectively. Some residents who had received three shots and were later infected also did not need the fourth jab yet, she said.
Yeung added officials would “still need to monitor the situation” when discussing whether to allow bivalent jabs as a third dose.
About 770,000 doses of the second-generation booster arrived in Hong Kong on Saturday, the first batch of 1.9 million jabs procured by the government, with the rest expected to arrive by the end of the year.
Chui urged authorities to make the second-generation vaccine available as a third dose option, while allowing the elderly to take the jabs even if they were not fully vaccinated.
“You can see that the United States has allowed citizens to take the second-generation jabs as the third jab,” he told a radio programme, adding Singapore had also allowed non-vaccinated residents to receive the new type.
Chui said data from pharmaceutical companies showed the bivalent vaccine could target Omicron variants better.
He noted more people were looking to travel after the government relaxed coronavirus rules under the “0+3” scheme, to three days of medical surveillance and no hotel quarantine for arrivals.
“I believe that is a big incentive for residents to get inoculated,” Chui said.
The city yesterday recorded 7,793 Covid-19 infections, including 605 imported cases, and 26 deaths related to the virus. The coronavirus tally stands at 2,101,888 cases, with 10,718 fatalities.
University of Hong Kong microbiologist Dr Ho Pak-leung also urged the public, especially those who were travelling, to receive the bivalent vaccine.
He explained the new vaccine could produce antibodies more quickly than the older ones, adding protection would rise significantly a week after inoculation.
With recently eased restrictions, venues that are accessible for inbound travellers during their medical surveillance period include non-dining areas of theme parks, museums, cinemas and event venues, as well as hair salons and places of worship. But they are still not allowed to visit restaurants and bars.
Daily Covid-19 cases have been hovering above the 8,000 mark recently, roughly double the figure at the start of the month.
Authorities had warned of a potential strain on the healthcare system as more elderly residents could become ill during the approaching cold weather, but stressed that changes in how resources were used meant they were better prepared for any further increases in infection numbers.