An elderly man receives his first dose of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine at a community vaccination center in Hong Kong, Feb 25, 2022. (KIN CHEUNG/AP)

HONG KONG - The Hong Kong government said on Friday that it would expand the in-home COVID-19 vaccination program to all 18 districts across Hong Kong by the end of this month.

"Our goal is to launch the Home Vaccination Service across Hong Kong on April 26 to protect the elderly and reduce their risk of serious illness and death from infection," said Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip Tak-kuen in a statement.

The government will launch a website and an inquiry hotline (5688 5234) for the Home Vaccination Service at 9 am on Tuesday. Unvaccinated elderly persons aged 70 or above and persons with impaired mobility can register for door-to-door Sinovac vaccination service, according to the statement.

Our goal is to launch the Home Vaccination Service across Hong Kong on April 26 to protect the elderly and reduce their risk of serious illness and death from infection.

Patrick Nip Tak-kuen, Secretary for the Civil Service 

"We welcome members of the public to register by phone or online for their unvaccinated family members and friends, who are elderly or with impaired mobility," Nip said. 

The government planned to roll out the service by districts, with four to five districts being served each week.

Medics will provide door-to-door vaccination services for the second dose of Sinovac vaccine 28 days after administering the first.

They will conduct a simple assessment on those eligible before vaccination, the statement read. Registrants may make enquiries with medical staff too.

The government said that as there are technical issues involving BioNTech vaccine such as dilution procedure and transportation arrangement, only door-to-door Sinovac vaccination is available at the moment.  

ALSO READ: HK: Virus boosters for children to open for booking Thursday

Members of the public can also bring their elderly family members to Community Vaccination Centres, Mobile Vaccination Stations, Hospital COVID-19 Vaccination Stations, or clinics for vaccination against COVID-19.

They are advised to make reservations or collect same-day tickets for vaccination of the elderly as soon as possible to reduce infection risks.

Meanwhile, the civil service secretary, together with representatives from the Labour and Welfare Bureau, the Food and Health Bureau, the Social Welfare Department and the Department of Health, met on Thursday with medical organizations and healthcare teams participating in the outreach vaccination service for residential care homes to brief them on the third stage vaccination arrangement.

“The second-stage target of outreach vaccination for RCHs has been achieved. The first dose vaccination rate at RCHs has risen from 55 percent in mid-March to 70 percent as at April 14, with the rate at RCHs for the elderly standing at 67 percent and the rate at RCHs for persons with disabilities at 81 percent. The overall vaccination rates for the second and third doses at RCHs are 42 percent and 7 percent respectively,” a government spokesman said on Friday.

READ MORE: CE receives 4th virus jab, urges elderly people to do the same

“Since many residents were infected with COVID-19 in March and later recovered, the government will provide the next stage of outreach vaccination service to unvaccinated RCH residents who have recovered from COVID-19, and those who are due to receive the next vaccine dose after their first or second doses on or before May 10 so as to achieve a comprehensive vaccination coverage,” the spokesman added.

The government also said that the supply of fresh food from the mainland was sufficient and stable as of Thursday.

The quantity of vegetables supplied from the mainland to Hong Kong by land and water transportation was about 2,400 metric tons, which is comparable to the average daily supply from the mainland on a normal day. The total supply of chilled meat from the mainland was about 37 tons. The supply of chilled poultry from the mainland was about 140,000 birds, and about 12,000 live chickens were slaughtered locally.