Hospital Authority (HA) Chairman Henry Fan Hung-ling said he was grateful to the central government for allocating much-needed personal protective equipment (PPE) to Hong Kong, when the city faced a particularly difficult time fighting COVID-19 in early February.

Public hospitals in Hong Kong were facing a shortage in PPE in early February, while there was a five-day strike by some of the health workers.

"The supply is now stable and good for nearly three months despite the fact COVID-19 was very rampant on the mainland at the time. … We were able to secure a continuing PPE supply from the Chinese mainland, even during this difficult period, for which we are very thankful," he said.

The new HA head also expressed gratitude to front-line medical workers and HA staff who worked extremely hard in fighting the virus.

To convey his gratitude, Fan has initiated an allowance of HK$500 (US$64.50) for healthcare workers to stay in hotels after they work in isolation wards for long hours. They have been staying away from home out of fear of infecting family members. The HA also reached an agreement with New World Development to allow free stays for healthcare workers at one of its hotels in Kowloon.

To boost morale, Fan revealed, there is another special allowance for these workers, calculated at 20 percent of their base salary.

It is not lower than HK$500 but has no upper limit. This will benefit lower-paid staff, he said, because all staff members face the same risks but receive different wages. Hong Kong has reported no infections among healthcare workers.