Macau plans to shorten quarantine for Hong Kong arrivals

Health officials in Macau are looking into the possibility of shortening the compulsory quarantine for Hong Kong arrivals, after Hong Kong has seen zero untraceable local infections for 15 days in a row.

Macau’s director of the Health Bureau, Alvis Lo lek Long, said both administrations can now initiate talks on how to lift pandemic-related border restrictions.

The health chief said the compulsory quarantine for Hong Kong arrivals may be shortened, along with a suspension mechanism if the situation changes.

There may also be quarantine-free travel for vaccinated persons.

Lo pointed out that even if local cases surfaced during the talks, they could still lay down the prerequisite on the lifting of the restrictions.

The last Covid case in Hong Kong dates back to June 5, involving a 17-year-old girl infected with the N501Y coronavirus variant, with her mother and sister also infected. However, no chain of transmission was detected in the territory.