The Centre for Health Protection today said it is investigating 32,430 additional COVID-19 cases, of which 13,335 were detected by way of nucleic acid tests and 19,095 were identified via rapid antigen tests.

For those who tested positive via nucleic acid tests, three cases are imported and the rest are locally infected.

Scientific committees under the centre convened an online meeting yesterday, joined by the Chief Executive’s expert advisory panel (EAP), to discuss the use of COVID-19 vaccines in people with previous COVID-19 infections and children, and the updated consensus interim recommendations.

The scientific committees and the EAP made recommendations on the number of vaccine doses required and the dosing interval.

In short, immunocompetent people with a past history of receiving two or more doses of the CoronaVac or Comirnaty vaccine before infection would not need to be vaccinated after recovery, wheras a maximum of two additional doses after recovery may be required for those who have not received two doses, depending on age and number of doses received before the infection.

While children and adolescents aged five to 17 recovered from COVID-19 who would like to receive the Comirnaty vaccine are recommended to receive a maximum of one dose, a second dose after recovery would still be allowed to cater to personal need if informed consent is obtained.

The experts recommended a third dose of the CoronaVac vaccine for children aged three to 11 to be given at least three months after receiving the second dose of the CoronaVac vaccine.

Separately, the Government made restriction-testing declarations to cover designated buildings where sewage samples tested positive for the virus.

The buildings include Oi Shun and Oi Lai houses of Yau Oi Estate and Block 3 of Tsui Ning Garden in Tuen Mun, Lee Yat House of Shun Lee Estate and On Kwan House of Shun On Estate in Kwun Tong, Lai Yuen House of Chuk Yuen South Estate in Wong Tai Sin.

People in the restricted areas must undergo compulsory testing before the specified deadline.

As there were positive sewage test results discovered in several housing estates in Kowloon City, Eastern, North, Kwun Tong and Sha Tin districts, the district offices will distribute COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits to relevant residents as well as cleaning workers and property management staff working in such areas.

The Government will reopen the mobile specimen collection station at Che Kung Temple Sports Centre tomorrow.

Furthermore, as Thai Airways' passenger flight TG600 from Bangkok on March 9 had one passenger who tested positive upon arrival and two passengers who failed to comply with the requirements specified under the Prevention & Control of Disease (Regulation of Cross-boundary Conveyances & Travellers) Regulation, the Department of Health has prohibited the landing of the airline's passenger flights in the city from Bangkok from March 13 to 26.

For information and health advice on COVID-19, visit the Government's dedicated webpage.