GEIS-新闻详情

Half of Hong Kong's eligible population fully vaccinated against Covid-19

2021-08-30 00:00:00.0 海峡时报-亚洲原网页

HONG KONG (XINHUA, BLOOMBERG) - Half of Hong Kong's eligible population have taken both shots of a Covid-19 vaccine as the Chinese financial hub is racing to build sufficient herd immunity amid the raging pandemic around the globe.

Around 3.37 million Hong Kong residents have been fully vaccinated under a government inoculation programme starting in late February this year, while more than 4.09 million people have received their first shot.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Centre for Health Protection reported three new imported cases of Covid-19 on Monday (Aug 30), taking the total tally to 12,110.

A total of 74 cases have been reported in the past 14 days, including one untraceable local case, with the rest imported, according to the centre.

To help seniors get their shots more easily, Hong Kong officials last month began allowing the elderly to go to vaccination centres without having first scheduled an appointment online.

The government on Wednesday announced it will expand that programme to include students above the age of 12 and all people above the age of 60.

Each student will also be able to have two adults accompany them and receive shots.

"As the summer holiday is coming to an end, we hope that such an arrangement will assist students and their parents who have not yet received vaccination to get vaccinated," a government spokesman said in a statement.