Health | Coronavirus: New response team established, all flights to be monitored

The Macau government has established an emergency response team in view of the worsening Wuhan coronavirus situation in the Asia-Pacific region, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Ao Ieong U announced yesterday.
The team will be responsible for formulating a comprehensive plan, instructions, and the coordination of all public and private entities in preventing and controlling any disease outbreak. The response team directly reports to the Chief Executive and the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture is the team’s vice chairman.
The team will launch plans to set out its preparedness and formulate a response scheme in case of an infectious disease outbreak of public health significance.
The Health Bureau (SSM) provided the latest information on the pneumonia cases of the newly emerged coronavirus infection, having said that no such cases have been recorded in Macau.
It said that the establishment of the response team is an upgrade of the measures in force. The response team will release information on the situation’s development to the public. The government wants to assure local residents that the formation of the new team is not a cause for concern. It urges local residents not to spread rumors or make assumptions.
The response team will operate 24 hours per day, with its hotline number as 2870 0800.
During yesterday’s press conference, Secretary Ao Ieong said that Macau is currently faced with the risk of an infectious disease outbreak. The city has also adopted a higher response level to cope with the situation’s development.
The local government has been monitoring the body temperature of passengers arriving at the Macau International Airport from Wuhan since the start of the year. Yesterday, the authorities informed that these body temperature monitoring measures have been widened. Starting from today, all passengers flying from mainland China to Macau will also go through a body temperature scan and must fill in a heath declaration form.
If a passenger refuses to fill the health declaration form, they can be subjected to a maximum of six months in prison.
The Health Commission of Guangdong Province reported that an additional 13 pneumonia cases of the coronavirus infection were reported today, with eight in Shenzhen, three in Zhuhai and one in Zhanjiang and Huizhou. Patients are comprised of eight males and five females. Eleven of them had a history of living in or travelling to Wuhan while two of them had a close contact with confirmed patients. Among the new cases, four are in a serious condition and two are in a critical condition.
According to Macau’s infection disease prevention law, currently, there is no need for Macau to restrict tourist arrivals or control human traffic.
Health Bureau (SSM) director Lei Chin Ion claimed that the local government will enhance prevention measures in all of Macau’s ports of entry.
As of yesterday, mainland China reported that 14 medical professionals are infected with the disease. The SSM head said that all relevant medical professionals are wearing protective uniforms and masks in Macau, and taking the necessary precautions.