Covid-19 | Health Bureau head bypassed questions on Macau-Taiwan communications

Dr. Alvis Lo, director of the Health Bureau (SSM), said yesterday that the local authority’s regular public release of information should be sufficient for other entities to evaluate the situation of imported cases.
Lo was asked at yesterday’s Covid-19 press briefing whether the health authorities in Macau and in Taiwan have a “smooth communication channel.”
He did not directly offer an answer, but referred to his bureau’s release of information to the public and said that foreign authorities could make use of the information.
“Clinical and epidemiological data of all Covid-19 patients in Macau have been released as much as [privacy protection allows], in order to maintain the clarity and transparency of our information [release], so that health authorities in any other places can take them into account,” the health official said. “I believe this is effective.”
Nonetheless, he stressed that the amount of information released is not unlimited, as the restrictions are in line with protecting the personal privacy of individuals.
“Of course, we need to strike a balance between public interests and personal privacy. We cannot make abundant disclosure,” Lo stressed. “Considering public health requirements, we have released what should have been released.”
However, the press requested a clarification, noting that the question was about the communications between Macau and Taiwan.
Lo then reiterated that the current manner in which information is released is a reliable means of communication.
“I think in my perception, such a transparent manner of information release for each case is a means of communication,” he said. “I believe all people, including the journalists here and all other residents, have been seeing clear messages about the time of arrival and the movement in Macau of an imported case.”
He added, “This is a very good mode of communication.”
Patient 53 eligible
to enter Macau
The press briefing yesterday was mainly concerned with how Patient 53, who entered Macau on June 17 and failed to declare that he had been to India, could be punished or prosecuted by the administration.
Dr. Leong Iek Hou, doctor in Public Health at the SSM, confirmed that the patient spent 21 days between exiting India and entering Macau.
Currently, non-local residents are banned from entering if they have been to any countries outside the Greater China Region in the 21 preceding days.
She stressed that the Taiwanese national was honest with regards to his travel history in the 28 days prior to his entry into Macau. He only failed to declare at the hospital his travel history in India between February and May this year.
The medical doctor stressed that for similar cases, the patient will only be prosecuted if they are a threat to public health.
As a result, Leong reminded all individuals to make an honest and complete declaration of travel history when questioned by the authorities on the grounds of epidemiological investigations.