New round of mass testing without ‘exemptions’
Those who have performed a NAT the previous day will not be exempt from the new round of citywide nucleic acid tests (NATs), the coordinator of the local Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Leong Iek Hou said yesterday during the daily briefing of the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Center.
The new round of citywide NAT starts today and ends tomorrow afternoon.
In a response to a media inquiry, Leong said, “[Today] will see the start of a new round of mass testing. This time, there will be no exemption for those who did a test on the previous day. Only tests from November 4 or November 5 will count towards this round of mass tests.”
Regarding the last round held between October 31 and 11 a.m. on November 1, the health authorities had validated all tests conducted on October 30. This led to a large number of people seeking to test that day, creating havoc at many NAT stations.
Authorities announced there would be more testing posts in Seac Pai Van as well as Riviera (in Macau’s Inner Harbour district) to cater to those with special needs in this second round.
As with previous rounds, Leong noted that pre-booking is mandatory and asked that people strictly only attend the station at the location and time of their booking.
The second NAT drive this week will kick off at 7 a.m. today and will run until 11:59 p.m., resuming 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. tomorrow. That is, the second NAT drive will take place over a total of 28 hours, consistent with the first round earlier this week.
Acknowledging that the risk in Macau is currently considered low, Leong nonetheless commented on the need for this second round to “avoid exporting the disease into mainland China.” She added that it would also “allow us to raise [mainland authorities’] confidence regarding people arriving from Macau.”
The same official noted that the health authorities had identified 5,600 people who did not participate in the first round of testing. Of these, the majority (3,806) have not yet done the test, she said. As such, their health codes have turned red and their cases will now be followed more closely by the Public Security Police Force (PSP).
As with the previous drive, officials said they hoped that schools would continue to organize students, class by class, to do the NAT. This work should be done in coordination with the Education and Youth Affairs Bureau (DSEDJ), with the students being tested at stations closer to their school.
Leong I On, division head for secondary education of the DSEDJ, added that the bureau is also arranging for University level students to undertake their tests during their spare time outside of classes.
No changes on the exemption for Covid-19 recovered patients
Questioned by the media on the topic, Leong clarified that there is no change to the previously announced rule that establishes a special exemption from participating in NAT mass testing. The exemption applies to those who have recently recovered from an infection with the virus.
“Local [infection] cases are exempted for a period of 60 days after leaving the treatment facility or hotel. For patients related to imported cases from abroad, the exemption period is 30 days after leaving the same treatment or recovery facility. Out of this period, everyone needs to participate,” Leong remarked.
24-Hour NAT validity to continue
In the same press briefing, the PSP representative, Lei Tak Fai, also clarified that the need for a 24-hour NAT validity period for border crossing is still in force and will remain that way for at least a few more days.
According to Lei, “when the outbreak was detected on October 30, the mainland authorities amended the measures for a 48 hour validity test to 24 hours – a measure that would be in effect for five days,” he explained. He added that the return to the previous state would require the parties to negotiate again, which should take place in upcoming days.
