The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, led a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) delegation to continue its visit to Singapore today (July 24). He met with leaders of the Singapore government, visited a local enterprise, attended a business dinner and had exchanges with local business leaders.
      
     In the morning, Mr Lee attended a breakfast meeting hosted by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance of Singapore, Mr Lawrence Wong. He then met with the Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Hsien Loong, and attended a lunch hosted by the Prime Minister.
      
     Noting the close relationship between Hong Kong and Singapore, Mr John Lee said that Singapore has consistently been Hong Kong's largest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and ranked first among ASEAN countries as the largest place of origin in terms of the number of companies present in Hong Kong. He said that competition and collaboration come hand in hand in today's closely connected global economy, and that he believed Hong Kong and Singapore will continue to be active partners in advancing both places and play a useful role in regional developments.
      
     Mr John Lee also stated that Hong Kong's bid to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is an important step in strengthening its relationship with ASEAN. He expressed his gratitude to Singapore for supporting Hong Kong's accession to the RCEP, and the HKSAR Government stands ready to engage in exploratory discussions with RCEP members, including Singapore, with a view to deepening mutual understanding and laying the groundwork for the ensuing formal negotiations.
      
     In the afternoon, the delegation led by Mr Lee visited a major Singaporean enterprise, Meinhardt Group, to learn about its business development in engineering consulting services. Mr Lee said that its successful experience of using Hong Kong as a springboard to tap into the Mainland market could inspire other Singaporean and ASEAN enterprises to follow suit. He also encouraged the Group to participate in the major development projects that Hong Kong is currently promoting, including the development of the Northern Metropolis.
      
     In the evening, Mr Lee attended a business dinner jointly organised by the HKSAR Government and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. Addressing about 200 representatives of the government and business leaders of Singapore, Mr Lee introduced the unique advantages of Hong Kong under "one country, two systems" and the latest investment opportunities in his keynote speech.
      
     During the dinner, enterprises and institutions of Hong Kong and Singapore also signed seven memoranda of understanding on areas including trade, financial services, fintech, innovation and technology, and research collaboration.
      
     Mr Lee will depart for Jakarta, Indonesia, tomorrow (July 25) morning to continue his visit programme.

                        

     The Social Welfare Department (SWD) said today (July 24) that it is continuing to follow up on the abandoned child case which happened in Kwong Wah Hospital on July 21.

     The Police filed an application to the Juvenile Court for a Care or Protection Order for the boy concerned on July 22. In accordance with the court order, the boy was arranged with residential care service in the Tuen Mun Children and Juvenile Home (TMCJH) of the SWD. The case was adjourned to August 18, pending submission of a report on the boy's condition by the social worker of the SWD.

     The Police have already contacted the mother of the boy. The case worker of the SWD will also contact her and, upon comprehensive assessments on the boy's condition, formulate suitable suggestions on his welfare plans for the court's consideration. The boy is required to reside in the TMCJH in accordance with the court order until the court has ruled on his welfare plan. With professional care and counselling services provided by the home, the boy is in good health and stable emotional condition. He also participates in group activities in the home.

     The SWD said that while this kind of abandoned child case is very rare in Hong Kong, social workers will, when handling each individual case, formulate suitable welfare plans for the children with their best interest as the paramount concern, taking account of all relevant information and factors of the case.

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (July 24) investigating a case of severe paediatric influenza A infection and reminded the community to heighten vigilance against influenza.

     The case involves a 25-month-old boy with good past health. He has presented with fever, cough, runny nose and decreased appetite since July 21 and developed convulsions on July 23. He was brought to see a family doctor on the same day due to worsening of symptoms, and was subsequently admitted to United Christian Hospital for management. His respiratory specimen was positive for influenza A (H3) virus upon laboratory testing. The clinical diagnosis was acute necrotising encephalopathy of childhood complicated with respiratory failure. He is now in critical condition.

     Initial enquiries by the CHP revealed that the patient had not received seasonal influenza vaccination (SIV) for this season and had no travel history during the incubation period. His home contacts are currently asymptomatic. The CHP's investigations are ongoing.

     A spokesman for the CHP said, "Influenza can cause serious illnesses in high-risk individuals and even healthy persons. SIV is recommended for all persons aged 6 months or above except those with known contraindications. Persons at higher risk of getting influenza and its complications, including the elderly and children, should receive SIV early. As it takes about two weeks to develop antibodies, members of the public are advised to receive SIV early for protection against seasonal influenza. Please see details of the vaccination schemes on the CHP's website."

     A person who gets influenza and COVID-19 at the same time may be more seriously ill and would have a higher risk of death. It is important to receive both SIV and COVID-19 vaccination as soon as possible, in particular for children and elderly persons residing in the community or residential care homes. The public should also maintain good personal and environmental hygiene against influenza and other respiratory illnesses and note the following:
 

• Surgical masks can prevent transmission of respiratory viruses from ill persons. It is essential for persons who are symptomatic (even if having mild symptoms) to wear a surgical mask;
• For high-risk persons (e.g. persons with underlying medical conditions or persons who are immunocompromised), wear a surgical mask when taking public transport or staying in crowded places. It is important to wear a mask properly, including performing hand hygiene before wearing and after removing a mask;
• Avoid touching one's eyes, mouth and nose;
• Wash hands with liquid soap and water properly whenever possibly contaminated;
• When hands are not visibly soiled, clean them with 70 to 80 per cent alcohol-based handrub;
• Cover the mouth and nose with tissue paper when sneezing or coughing. Dispose of soiled tissue paper properly into a lidded rubbish bin, and wash hands thoroughly afterwards;
• Maintain good indoor ventilation;
• When having respiratory symptoms, wear a surgical mask, refrain from work or attending classes at school, avoid going to crowded places and seek medical advice promptly; and
• Maintain a balanced diet, perform physical activity regularly, take adequate rest, do not smoke and avoid overstress.

     The public may visit the CHP's influenza page and weekly COVID-19 & Flu Express for more information.

     The Transport Department (TD) said today (July 24) that the operation of the HKeToll has been generally smooth since its implementation at the Cross-Harbour Tunnel from 5am yesterday (July 23).
      
     The TD's Emergency Transport Co-ordination Centre has been closely monitoring the traffic situation at the Cross-Harbour Tunnel. The overall traffic flow has been smooth in general. During today's morning peak hours, the traffic queue at Princess Margaret Road towards Hong Kong Island is at the petrol station near the Oi Man Estate, which is similar to that before the implementation of the HKeToll. With less lane-cutting activities at the tunnel portal, the driving experience is smoother than before, and generally motorists can adapt to the new traffic arrangements.
      
     At present, 97 per cent of vehicles are issued vehicle tags. From 0.00am to 5.30pm today, a total of about 73 000 vehicles passed through the Cross-Harbour Tunnel. Among them, about 90 per cent of the vehicles were detected with vehicle tags installed, and about 70 per cent of the vehicles used an automatic payment means. With the progressive implementation of the HKeToll in government toll tunnels, the TD once again appeals to vehicle owners who have received vehicle tags to complete the three steps for the HKeToll service as soon as possible: (1) install a vehicle tag, (2) open an HKeToll account and (3) set up an automatic payment means, so as to fully enjoy the convenience of the HKeToll.
      
     The TD reminds that vehicle owners must pay the toll within 14 business days after passing through the tunnel. He/she can log on the HKeToll website (hketoll.gov.hk) or mobile app to check the outstanding toll and pay, either by credit card or by following the instructions to generate a QR code to either pay via the Faster Payment System or at 7-Eleven convenience stores by cash.
      
     The HKeToll website provides a video to guide vehicle owners on how to set up the automatic payment means and pay outstanding tolls online. Payments of outstanding tolls can also be made at the four customer service centres and four service outlets. If vehicle owners have any enquiries about setting up an automatic payment means, paying an outstanding toll or the HKeToll, they should call the 24-hour customer service hotline at 3853 7333 or visit the customer service centres, service outlets or consultation counters at designated MTR stations and Home Affairs Enquiry Centres in the District Offices. The staff will provide appropriate assistance. The locations and service hours of the above-mentioned facilities is at the Annex.
      
     Following the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, the HKeToll will be implemented at the the Western Harbour Crossing and the Eastern Harbour Crossing in August. Details and exact dates will be announced separately.

     The Department of Health (DH) today (July 24) announced that with effect from this Friday (July 28), eligible Hong Kong elderly persons can share-use health care vouchers (Vouchers) with their spouse. In addition, starting from the same date, the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme (EHVS) will implement the use of electronic consent (e-consent) and introduce real-time short messaging service (SMS) to provide further convenience to elderly persons using the Vouchers.

     The Chief Executive announced in the 2022 Policy Address a series of enhancement measures of the EHVS, including allowing couples to share-use the Vouchers. At present, over 950 000 elderly persons aged 65 and above in Hong Kong are married, and they will be able to benefit from this new share-use arrangement.

      In firming up the arrangements of the plan, one of the key principles adopted by the Government is to provide convenience to elderly persons. Elderly couples (both parties aged 65 or above) who intend to share-use the Vouchers are not required to register in advance for pairing up their accounts. When either party of an elderly couple uses the Voucher to pay for healthcare services, both of them only need to attend the practice of any healthcare service provider participating in the EHVS for pairing up their Voucher accounts. During the registration process, elderly persons are not required to provide any documentary proof of spousal relationship. However, they need to declare their spousal relationship and give consent to share-use their Vouchers to ensure their eligibility when registering for pairing up accounts in front of a healthcare service provider. Elderly persons will be directly requested by the Government to provide supporting documents for verification when necessary later. Upon completion of registration for pairing the accounts, there is no further need to register for pairing accounts again when Vouchers are used.

     If either party of an elderly couple is unable to register in person due to exceptional circumstances (e.g. immobility or being bedridden), they need to complete and sign the "Consent of Sharing Health Care Vouchers between Voucher Recipients in Spousal Relationship" (downloadable from the EHVS website (www.hcv.gov.hk), which have to be submitted by the elderly person attending a healthcare service provider’s practice by bringing along a copy of a valid Hong Kong identity card (HKIC) (or Certificate of Exemption (CoE), if applicable) of the spouse who is unable to attend to complete the registration process.

     Following the completion of account pairing, the elderly person and his/her spouse can, upon exhaustion of his/her own Voucher account balance, use the Voucher balance in his/her spouse's account. Every time spouse's Vouchers are used, the elderly person is required to provide a copy of the latest HKIC (or CoE, if applicable) of the spouse to the healthcare service provider for verification.

     To safeguard the interest of both parties with accounts paired, an elderly person and his/her spouse with the account successfully paired will each receive an SMS at his/her designated contact mobile phone number to ensure that both of them are aware that their accounts have been paired. Whenever their Voucher balance has been used by his/her spouse in future, they will also receive SMS notifications.

     Apart from allowing the use of Vouchers between spouses, from the same date, the EHVS will also launch the use of e-consent to replace the previous paper-based consent to confirm the agreement of using Vouchers. When elderly persons use Vouchers to pay for service fees, they only need to insert their HKIC into the smart identity card reader for expressing agreement to the use of the relevant Voucher amount. They are no longer required to sign on the paper consent form. All elderly persons using Vouchers can provide a local mobile phone number which can receive an SMS to the healthcare service provider. When Vouchers are used to pay for healthcare services, the system will send a real-time SMS notification (including the Voucher amount used) to provide extra security.
 
     A spokesman for the DH reminded, "The EHVS aims to provide convenience and subsidy to elderly persons to receive private primary healthcare services that best suit their health needs in terms of disease prevention and health management. In share-using Vouchers between spouses, elderly persons must consider their own needs and should fully communicate with their spouse to make thorough plans on how to make the best use of their Vouchers after pairing up their accounts. Moreover, Vouchers cannot be used solely for purchasing goods, medication, medical equipment and products, or redeemed for cash."

     To ensure the proper use of public money, the DH will conduct regular or sampling checks in accordance with the monitoring mechanism. All suspected cases of false declaration about a spousal relationship will be strictly dealt with and referred to law enforcement agencies for investigation. Making a false declaration is a criminal offence and offenders are liable to a fine or imprisonment upon conviction.

     The spokesman added, "The DH and healthcare service providers will not, in relation to the use of Vouchers (including Voucher account pairing), ask for any bank account details (including passwords) of the elderly persons via phone calls or SMS, nor will they ask the elderly persons to click on any website links. Elderly persons must stay vigilant against scams."

     To facilitate understanding of the procedures for pairing of elderly couple's Voucher accounts, the DH has held a total of 10 briefing sessions from July 19 to 24 for healthcare service providers, and explained to relevant healthcare personnel the relevant measures and answered their queries.

     Members of the public may refer to the EHVS website (www.hcv.gov.hk) for more information, or call the EHVS hotline (2838 2311) for enquiries.