(To watch the full press briefing with sign language interpretation, click here.)

The Hospital Authority is actively enhancing its capacity to handle the increasing number of COVID-19 patients, noting that the top priority is given to the needy groups.

Hospital Authority Chief Manager (Integrated Clinical Services) Dr Larry Lee explained the authority's strategies on patient placement in a press briefing this afternoon.

“Talking about the strategies of how we handle a huge number of patients, actually we share the direction that we try to limit the public hospitals to handle only those needy groups, including the elderly, kids and also people with other special considerations such as patients with major medical backgrounds or maybe those who are pregnant.

“For the other confirmed cases, we will consider their placements or maybe their isolation will be in the Hospital Authority Community Treatment Facility at AsiaWorld-Expo and also the community isolation facility at Penny’s Bay.”

Dr Lee said the authority has been preparing more rooms for patients at Penny’s Bay and the AsiaWorld-Expo facilities.

“We are on the way to using the second phase at Penny’s Bay. There will be 1,200 rooms ready and more will be coming.

“And actually we are actively preparing to use the other phases at Penny’s Bay, and also the additional halls in the AsiaWorld-Expo.”