COVID-19 Cases Soar To Record High, China Wants Hong Kong To Focus On Cutting Infections And Deaths

JAKARTA - Hong Kong needs to stick to its 'zero dynamic' coronavirus strategy, which focuses on reducing infections, severe illness and deaths, a senior Chinese health official said, as the city prepares for details of its planned mass testing expected this month.

Liang Wannian of China's National Health Commission, who is in Hong Kong to coordinate efforts to combat the growing outbreak, said mass testing needed to be carried out at the right time with all details carefully regulated, the official Xinhua news agency said.

"Reducing infections, severe cases and deaths is the most urgent and top priority in Hong Kong at the current stage. After the first target is achieved, then we can move on to the second and third targets," he said, citing Reuters from Xinhua March 8.

Dynamic zero does not mean zero infections with such a strong COVID transmission, Liang said. However, Hong Kong must do its best to reduce infections and take measures to cut further transmissions.

Liang's comments come as infections in the Asian financial hub have surged to record highs, totaling about 500.000 cases and more than 2.200 deaths, most of them in the past two weeks.

Authorities have given contradictory and confusing messages about the mandatory mass testing scheme and whether it will coincide with a city-wide lockdown.

Food prices in Hong Kong have soared and supermarket shelves sold out every day for a week, as stockpiles of anxious residents worry about a potential lockdown.

To note, Hong Kong is expected to report tens of thousands of new coronavirus infections on Tuesday, following the launch of a self-reporting website late Monday where people can register if they are infected with the coronavirus.

Later, after registering on a government website, authorities will try to put people in isolation facilities if their homes are too crowded, officials said.