From the FT:
Hong Kong effectively managed the first wave of coronavirus outbreak through border restrictions, quarantine, isolation and social distancing – without resorting to a total lockdown – according to a new study in The Lancet, the UK medical journal.
The research by the University of Hong Kong showed that border entry restrictions, testing, contract tracing and isolation and population behavioural changes were effective in reducing the transmission of Covid-19 in the territory in early February.
The report also suggested that there were much reduced influenza transmission in February, compared with times of school closures in the past. Therefore, the study concluded, other social distancing measures and avoidance behaviours had a substantial impact.
“By quickly implementing public health measures, Hong Kong has demonstrated that Covid-19 transmission can be effectively contained without resorting to the highly disruptive complete lockdown” adopted by mainland China, the US and western European countries, said Benjamin Cowling, a professor at HKU’s School of Public Health who led the research.