Dr Yuen Calls for Independent Inquiry into Handling Covid-19

How well did Hong Kong handle the Covid-19 pandemic? 

Infectious diseases professor Yuen Kwok-yung is calling for an independent inquiry into Hong Kong's handling of Covid-19 so that the city can better prepare the next time another pandemic comes around.

During a radio program, Yuen explained that after the 2003 SARS outbreak (20 years ago this March!), an inquiry was held, which led to the establishment of the Centre for Health Protection. 

Yuen and his duck mask that made him endearing

The centre has since put more resources into research and this helped to fight against Covid, he said.

Yuen said there was definitely room for improvement in contact-tracing and isolation arrangements during the current pandemic.

"We saw 12,000 to 13,000 deaths. Why don't we conduct a thorough investigation and clarify what we should do in the future? Speaking for myself, if I'm lucky, as an infectious disease expert, I might see a third pandemic during my lifetime. Hong Kong must be prepared for it."

Does Yuen realise the political implications of calling for an independent inquiry and where it will go? If the government agrees to it -- and that's a big IF -- the scope would probably be so limited to ensure the authorities look good.

An independent inquiry is definitely needed -- not only in the medical handling of this pandemic that led to one of the highest death rates in the world, but also the cost from the financial handouts, to the construction of those isolation units that are now collecting dust all over the city.

Hospitals overwhelmed with infected elderlies

How many of those pandemic kits were handed out, that had N95 masks, rapid antigen tests and that Chinese herbal medicine Lianghua Qingwen? How much did that cost? And the PCR tests conducted in the community testing centres. How many vials of vaccines were wasted?

The inquiry could also give insight into the communications between the infectious disease experts like Yuen and the government, and possibly hints if Beijing played a role in Hong Kong shaping its Covid policy.

We await to see the response...

In the meantime, Yuen is suggesting that masks come off at the end of March when the weather gets warmer and the virus has a shorter life cycle.

He warned there could be another surge of Covid-19 and other respiratory disease infections after people take off their masks, but says this is an inevitable part of opening up.

Get boosted in October, November says Yuen

"Once we take off our masks, the situation may get quite serious. But we have already said in February and March 2020 that this virus will stay with us... We have to open up sooner or later, and it's better to open up sooner after enough people are vaccinated," he said.

Yuen said people should get another Covid booster by October and November to prepare for a possible rebound in the winter.

Ah, it's never ending...

China Pushing Chinese Remedies to Treat Covid-19

Shelves in pharmacies in China are cleared of flu medication

With an estimated 36 million people infected with Covid-19 in China right now, residents there are desperate to find medication to treat flu symptoms and have even enlisted friends and family abroad to send them paracetamol and ibuprofen.

Not only is there a massive shortage of medicine in China, but also the government is handing out Chinese medicine instead -- Lianhua Qingwen, which some say has zero benefit in fighting the virus -- and people don't want it.

The government is stepping up production of Lianhua Qingwen and distributing tens of thousands of boxes across the country. Sound familiar? Last spring the Hong Kong government gave out packages wrapped in small garbage bags filled with N95 masks, a pack of rapid antigen tests, and two boxes of the Chinese medicine.

The government is pushing Lianhua Qingwen

A friend collected the two Chinese medicine boxes from me to distribute to people in her building complex who swore by taking it.

But in China, some residents like those in Yunnan province are complaining they are given the Chinese medicine and can't find modern ones, like paracetamol to help alleviate symptoms.

"Why give us expensive Lianhua Qingwen? What we need is drugs that can lower the temperature, such as ibuprofen and paracetamol," said one Weibo user.

"Why can Lianhua Qingwen be transported and distributed freely, while the usual fever drugs are not available or distributed?" asked another.

According to manufacturer Shijiazhuang Yiling Pharmaceutical, Lianhua Qingwen is based on a formula dating back to the Han dynasty (202BC-220AD). The modern treatment was developed in 2003 for severe acute respiratory syndrome or SARS.

Liu Qingquan, president of Beijing Hospital of Traditional Medicine, said earlier this month that the Chinese medicine was able to treat all kinds of diseases, including the Omicron variant.

However, medical authorities begged to differ.

Residents are demanding modern medicine

In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration has warned against using Lianhua Qingwen, saying it has not been approved or authorised. In Australia it has been banned outright because it contains ephedra, which can be used to make methamphetamine.

Last year Singapore's Health Sciences Authority warned that although the Chinese medicine could treat cold and flu symptoms, it was not approved for Covid-19 and threatened to punish sellers who made false claims about its benefits.

So even though Beijing is trying to look like a benevolent dictator, distributing lots of medicine to people, it's not what they want or need.

Some medical experts tracking Covid-19 from outside China are looking on with horror at how the country has just opened the  floodgates and allowed Covid-19 to spread. They worry that because not enough people are vaccinated or exposed to the virus that their immune systems will not be able to cope, let alone their healthcare systems.

It's a recipe for disaster that is manmade. 

And not a peep about blaming someone at the top...