The city has not yet seen any recovered patients show symptoms of “long Covid,” neurosurgeon Warren Tai, medical director of the public Conde de São Januário Hospital, said yesterday.
In response to a question from the Times at the regular health press conference, the medical doctor said that, as yet, no such symptoms have been found in the city’s approximately 80 recovered Covid-19 patients.
Tai stressed that all patients had been recovering well from the disease, although some have shown signs of relapse. “They have CT-values of 40, which, under the current standard, does not even classify them as patients,” Tai said.
Elaborating on the sidelines of the press conference, the medical doctor said he suspected that the small number of Covid-19 patients in Macau was the reason for the lack of long Covid cases.
“Judging from international statistics [indicating] 1% of recovered Covid-19 patients showed long Covid conditions, the city’s base figure is still [too] small to have [that] finding,” Tai explained.
He also noted that the SSM’s criteria for classifying patients as “severe” cases were slightly stricter than in other places. “The only severe case we had was classified [as such] because she [was] short of breath and needed respirator support,” Tai confirmed, hinting that this may not have been classified as a severe infection outside of Macau, leading to the absence of long Covid symptoms.
The Times also asked Tai to explain why students are having to wait for their partial refund of the quarantine fee under the student discount scheme offered by the government.
Tai said in response that documents sent to the quarantine hotels and SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid test (NAT) operators must be transferred to the Education and Youth Development Bureau (DSEDJ) for confirmation.
It may be the reason behind the lengthened processing period, Tai said, but he does not think it will be much longer. He added that students usually receive their refund before leaving the quarantine hotel.
However, a social media user pointed out the case of a local student in Hong Kong who has not yet received the cashback despite finishing quarantine in March this year.
NAT price lowered
from today
From 9 a.m. today, each NAT will be priced at MOP55, provided that it is taken at the Qingmao border, the Hengqin border, Macao Forum, Taipa Maritime Terminal, Kiang Wu Hospital or the Macau University of Science and Technology Hospital.
Those who have booked and paid for tests beforehand will have the price difference refunded.
Tai said that the government is in touch with NAT providers at quarantine hotels to encourage them to also lower their prices. However, a series of factors, such as the requirement for single-sample tests, may hinder progress on lowering test prices.
Tai also revealed that the SSM is considering the replacement of certain required NATs, with rapid antigen tests in the context of key groups such as sailors and flight crew.
