Earlier curbs on the unjabbed boosting take-up: CE

Chief Executive Carrie Lam says there’s been an increase in the number of people getting Covid jabs since she announced that vaccinations could be made mandatory for visitors to restaurants and various other businesses from February 4.

After initially indicating that “vaccine bubble” arrangements would be extended to more places before Chinese New Year, officials later pushed the date back to February 24.

On Friday, however, Lam said the new date for this could be February 4 – when certain pandemic restrictions are currently slated to end – as long as there are no further Covid outbreaks in the city.

Speaking to the media before Tuesday’s Executive Council meeting, Lam said her comments on Friday persuaded more people to get jabbed.

“As a result of that suggestion, of course we are already seeing an increase – I wouldn’t describe it as a surge – in vaccinations amongst the population, especially amongst the older population, which is to be welcome,” she said.

Lam said for example, around 18,000 people got their first jab on Monday.

She said the vaccination rate among older people has also increased, with around 55 percent of those in their 70s now inoculated.

The latest figures show that more than 76 percent of the city’s eligible population have received at least one Covid jab.