Covid-19: From Oct 13, unvaccinated people not allowed to dine in or enter malls, attractions

SINGAPORE — Starting Wednesday (Oct 13) those who are not fully vaccinated will not be allowed entry into malls, large standalone stores, attractions, hawker centres and coffee shops, so as to protect them and reduce the strain on the healthcare system, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said.

Supermarkets that are large standalone stores are exempted, so unvaccinated shoppers can still go there. Children aged 12 years and below, recovered Covid-19 patients, and unvaccinated individuals with a valid negative pre-event test result are also exempted from the new restrictions.

Previously, unvaccinated individuals could dine out in groups of two at hawker centres and coffee shops as well as enter malls, large standalone stores,and attractions.

MOH said in a statement on Saturday (Oct 9): “Epidemiological investigations have identified food-and-beverage (F&B) settings such as hawker centres, retail establishments and shopping centres as settings frequently visited by a significant proportion of Covid-19-positive cases, including those who are unvaccinated, and later on, they fell very sick.”

The ministry added that enterprises that can implement the vaccination-related measures earlier “are strongly encouraged to do so”.

The new rules mean that only fully vaccinated people, in groups of up to two, will be allowed to eat out at hawker centres and coffee shops, just as it is for all other regular F&B establishments, MOH said.

“Individuals who do not meet the above criteria can still buy takeaway food.” 

Similarly, only fully vaccinated people, in groups of up to two, will be allowed into malls, large standalone stores and attractions.

MOH reiterated that most people who are vaccinated and catch the coronavirus have “only mild or no symptoms”, and children aged 12 and below “generally have mild or no symptoms as well, even though they are unvaccinated”.

“However, for seniors who are unvaccinated, they are at great risk of falling very sick if infected.”

This group makes up 1.5 per cent of the population, but they account for two-thirds of those who need intensive care or have died when infected, MOH added.

“We will therefore need to expand our vaccination-differentiated safe management measures to protect the unvaccinated.”