To further encourage unvaccinated elderly for early vaccination so as to reduce their risk of serious illness and death from infection, the Government will work with district groups and the property management sector to roll out a new round of a scheme to visit elderly persons in Wong Tai Sin, Kwun Tong and Kwai Tsing Districts to encourage them to receive COVID-19 vaccination starting from tomorrow (October 22). They will gradually pay door-to-door visits to households at the public housing estates with elderly tenants aged 70 or above who have yet to receive COVID-19 vaccination in the Districts.
 
     The Health Bureau, the Civil Service Bureau, the Home Affairs Department and the Housing Department, in collaboration with the Wong Tai Sin Community Anti-Coronavirus Link, Kwun Tong Community Anti-Coronavirus Link, Kwai Tsing Community Anti-Coronavirus Link, the Hong Kong Association of Property Services Agents and the Kowloon Federation of Associations Kwun Tong District Committee, will focus on visiting elderly persons aged 70 or above who have yet to receive COVID-19 vaccination and convince them to get vaccinated as soon as possible. Elderly persons who are willing to receive vaccination will be arranged to participate in vaccination events in the Districts. For those elderly persons with special needs, they can register for the Home Vaccination Service. The Secretary for Health has also written to the relevant elderly persons, explaining the arrangement of the scheme to visit the elderly to encourage COVID-19 vaccination and appealing to them to get vaccinated as soon as possible. The Government will, based on the Central Vaccination Database, arrange visits to addresses (not including other personal data) of elderly who have yet to receive COVID-19 vaccination.
 
     "Receiving COVID-19 vaccination can effectively reduce the risk of serious illness and death from infection. The Government has spared no effort in boosting the COVID-19 vaccination rate of the elderly. Following the pilot scheme to visit elderly persons to encourage them to receive COVID-19 vaccination at Tsz Man and Tsz Hong Estates in Tsz Wan Shan, Wong Tai Sin on September 17 and 18, the scheme will be further extended to public housing estates in Wong Tai Sin, Kwun Tong and Kwai Tsing Districts starting from tomorrow. Various government departments, district groups and the property management sector will continue doing their best, taking one step further and overcoming all challenges, to convince the elderly and remind members of the public who have not received suitable doses of vaccine in a timely manner to get the suitable doses on time as soon as possible," said a Government spokesman.
 
     In tandem with the scheme to visit elderly to encourage COVID-19 vaccination, the Wong Tai Sin District Office will organise a community Sinovac vaccination event at S K H St Benedict's School tomorrow from 10am to 3pm, while the Community Vaccination Station situated at Wong Tai Sin Temple Square, open from 9am to 6pm providing both the Sinovac vaccine and the BioNTech vaccine for selection by residents, will strengthen its service to cater for the event. 
 
     In addition, the Kwai Tsing District Office will organise a Sinovac vaccination event at Cheung Hang Community Hall on Sunday (October 23) from 2pm to 4pm.
 
     The Kwun Tong District Office will organise a community vaccination event at Sau Ming Primary School in Sau Mau Ping on Sunday from 9.30am to 4.30pm, providing both types of COVID-19 vaccines for the public to choose.
 
     Persons aged 6 months or above may receive the Sinovac vaccine and persons aged 12 or above may also opt for the BioNTech vaccine. The arrangement is applicable to eligible persons for their first, second, third or fourth vaccine dose. Members from the Districts are welcome to walk-in for the three abovementioned community vaccination events.
 
     The Government appeals to members of the public for active co-operation and fight against the epidemic in solidarity by early vaccination.
 
     The designated website for the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme (www.covidvaccine.gov.hk/en/programme) provides the latest information including details on vaccination venues, reservation and enquiry hotlines.

Ends/Friday, October 21, 2022
Issued at HKT 15:10

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