 is investigating a second severe paediatric COVID-19 case this week.){kind=link}
12th June 2026 – (Hong Kong) Hong Kong’s Centre for Health Protection (CHP) is investigating a second severe paediatric COVID-19 case this week, urging the public to keep up rigorous personal and environmental hygiene and reminding high‑risk groups to take initial and booster vaccinations at the right time.
The patient is a 12‑month‑old boy with no underlying conditions. He developed fever, cough and a runny nose on 2nd June. A rapid antigen test taken on 3rd June was positive for COVID‑19. He attended the Accident and Emergency Department at Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital and was admitted on 4th June, before being transferred the same day to the paediatric intensive care unit at Prince of Wales Hospital for severe croup. He remains in critical condition. Laboratory testing confirmed SARS‑CoV‑2, with a clinical diagnosis of COVID‑19 complicated by croup.
Preliminary enquiries show the child was unvaccinated and had no travel history during incubation. Two household contacts developed mild respiratory symptoms from 4 June, recovered and did not require hospital care.
The CHP stressed that vaccination reduces the risk of severe illness and death. Surveillance indicates local COVID‑19 activity remains relatively low but has edged up since early May: the positivity rate at the Public Health Laboratory Services Branch rose from 0.45% in early May to 1.39% last week. Activity has tended to surge every six to nine months as variants change and community immunity wanes. Nearly a year has passed since the last upturn, and a further rise in the next one to two months cannot be ruled out.
Because existing Government programme vaccine stocks are nearing expiry, a short transition gap in free supply is expected before new doses arrive in the fourth quarter of 2026. Parents and eligible individuals are advised to book early. Free vaccination remains available until 10 July 2026 for children aged six months to 11 years, and until 5 September 2026 for those aged 12 and over.