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| Monday, 5 May 2003 |
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New SARS cases taper in Hong Kong, but death toll mounts in China HONG KONG, Sunday (AFP)-Reports of new cases of the mysterious pneumonia-like respiratory illness SARS wracking Hong Kong reached a new low of 10 on Saturday, but the death toll continued to soar along with that in mainland China. Nine deaths in both Hong Kong and China were reported Saturday by health authorities, bringing the death toll in the territory to 179 with 1,621 infections and 190 in China with 3,971 infections. Globally, infections by the respiratory virus that begins with flu-like symptoms seem to have stabilized, with no new infections or deaths reported anywhere else Saturday. Current infections worldwide stand at 6,228 with a death toll of 435 according to statistics compiled by the World Health Organization and national health agencies. While reports of new cases in Hong Kong seem to be tapering, the mortality rate could increase, worried health officials warned. No deaths from Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome have been reported for two weeks in southern China's Guangdong province, where the virus is thought to have originated, state media reported Saturday. But treatment for those infected with the virus still continues to be a hardship for China's severely-overtaxed health care system. Seeking to rectify the imbalance in funding for the paralyzed federal agency, the government announced an an additional 60 million yuan (7.23 million US dollars) to subsidize SARS-fighting operations, Xinhua reported. The additional funds announced by the National Headquarters for Prevention and Control will target the badly-hit Hebei province near Beijing and the northern Shanxi province, the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps in the west of the country. Beijing will also provide free health care to peasants infected by the disease, and to pay for SARS-related treatment in the capital for anyone unable to afford it, hoping to curb the flight back to the countryside by migrant workers who could spread the disease further afield. Meanwhile in Singapore, police filed criminal charges against a man who defied a home quarantine order, signalling the government's determination to enforce an all-out campaign against SARS, which has claimed 25 lives and infected at least 203 people in the densely-populated city state. Some 3,000 Singaporeans are currently under home quarantine for a minimum of 10 days for observation after having been potentially exposed to SARS, for which there has yet to be a cure or vaccine. |
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