Covid-19 | Eased cross-border measures for vaccinated people under consideration

The Macau and mainland governments are in negotiations to examine the possibility of granting fully vaccinated people an extended validity period for their certificates of negative Covid-19 test results.
Dr. Tai Wa Hou, coordinator of the Health Bureau’s Covid-19 Vaccination Operation, remarked on this discussion when asked the chances of such a relaxation at yesterday’s press conference.
“[We] have to continue to monitor the Covid-19 situation. The pandemic in Guangzhou has displayed signs of abating. However, new cases have started to emerge in some other places,” he stated.
There are, emphatically, no specific indicators that the government is moving to enable the easing of cross-border measures, he added.
From June 8, the government has shortened the validity period for negative SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results from seven to two days for arrivals entering Macau from Guangdong Province, as a control measure to minimize contagion risks.
The new measure has put cross-border workers under greater financial pressure, and also cooled the desire of mainland travellers to travel to Macau.
Recently, the pandemic has been kept in check by the municipal governments in Guangdong Province.
According to the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China, the mainland reported no locally-transmitted cases on June 23, while registering a total of 16 imported cases.
Guangdong Province has not seen any locally transmitted cases for two days as of June 22 to the present.
The Guangzhou Municipal Health Commission also released an announcement yesterday, stating that the status of Baihedong Street at Liwan District has been modified from a high-risk to low-risk area.
Meanwhile, the Shenzhen Municipal Health Commission mounted a briefing to announce that the city has achieved great success in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic — reporting no cases for 17 consecutive days.
Dishonest resident not identified as close contact
A Macau resident who entered Macau on June 23 and concealed his previous travel history to Yuexiu District over the past 14 days is not considered a close contact of any confirmed patient. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are thus not required to disclose the individual’s whereabouts, said CDC coordinator Leong Iek Hou yesterday.
The individual was admitted to the quarantine facility to undergo mandatory medical observation, as he had been to Yuexiu District, a medium-risk area for Covid-19.
According to the official information, the individual is a Macau resident living in Zhuhai, who went to Yuexiu District to seek medical treatment from June 2 to 11. He returned to Zhuhai on June 11 and entered Macau through Hengqin port on June 23.
It is suspected that the individual had not declared this travel history precisely while applying for the city’s health code upon arrival, to avoid the mandatory quarantine.
Leong called on the public to disclose their whereabouts honestly so as to help safeguard public health.