SINGAPORE — From Mar 1, it will no longer be mandatory for people to wear masks in some healthcare settings that are considered lower-risk, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Thursday (Feb 29) as it adjusts Singapore's Covid-19 response protocols, including vaccine recommendations.

“Mask-wearing will no longer be compulsory for patients, visitors and staff in outpatient settings, including polyclinics, general practitioner clinics, specialist outpatient clinics, dialysis centres, Traditional Chinese Medicine clinics and dental clinics,” said MOH. 

“However, mask-wearing is still strongly encouraged for medically vulnerable persons, seniors and persons with acute respiratory infection (ARI) in these settings.”

Mask-wearing will also be required for higher-risk healthcare settings, such as inpatient wards, emergency departments and residential care facilities. 

“We intend for this to be a standing requirement, to improve general infection control practices in these areas,” the ministry said in a media release.

“Inpatients of hospitals and residents of residential care facilities are not required to wear a mask. Nevertheless, as good practice, we encourage residents and inpatients to wear a mask if they are unwell or develop ARI symptoms.”

The revised measure comes about a year after Singapore lowered its disease alert level to green under the Disease Outbreak Response System Condition (Dorscon) framework.

On Feb 13, 2023, the country lifted most Covid-19 curbs, including mask-wearing on public transport and border measures. The TraceTogether app and tokens were no longer needed, and the government stood down the Covid-19 multi-ministry task force that was convened in January 2020 to respond to the pandemic. 

The Health Ministry noted on Thursday that in the year since Singapore lowered its Dorscon level, people have been living with Covid-19 as an endemic disease, weathering two major infection waves without the need for further restrictions. 

Taking into consideration the stronger collective resilience of our population, the Ministry of Health will progressively stand down the remaining Covid-19 response protocols, and integrate them into our broader public health programmes from Mar 1, 2024, it added.

UPDATED VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS

Covid-19 vaccine recommendations have also been updated. 

For people who have not been vaccinated, two initial doses of Covid-19 vaccines would now be sufficient to ensure an essential level of protection, down from the previous recommendation of three initial doses. 

"Thereafter, they should receive any additional doses being offered or recommended to them based on prevailing recommendations, taking into account their age, medical conditions and other factors," said the expert committee on Covid-19 vaccination. 

Explaining the revised guidelines, the expert committee said this is because most people would have had one or more Covid-19 infections and would have some underlying protection even if they are unvaccinated.

"A sequence of two vaccine doses will be sufficient to ensure an essential level of protection for unvaccinated persons," it added.

Beyond the initial doses to achieve minimum protection, MOH said people should still go for any additional doses being offered or recommended to them.

The overall vaccination guidelines are:

• Unvaccinated people should receive two initial vaccine doses at an interval of eight weeks apart.
• An additional dose of an updated vaccine for 2024 continues to be recommended and should be administered around one year (and no earlier than five months) after the last dose received.
• The additional dose is recommended for people aged 60 and above, medically vulnerable individuals, as well as residents of aged care facilities.
• The additional dose is also encouraged for all individuals aged six months and above, in particular healthcare workers, as well as household members and caregivers of medically vulnerable people.

CLOSURE OF 4 JOINT TESTING AND VACCINATION CENTRES

Given the “stable demand” for Covid-19 vaccination, MOH will cease operations at four Joint Testing and Vaccination Centres (JTVCs) from Apr 1 — Ang Mo Kio, Jurong West, Pasir Ris and Yishun.

The five remaining JTVCs are located at Bukit Merah, Jurong East, Kaki Bukit, Sengkang and Woodlands. 

"Covid-19 vaccinations will continue to be available at more than 200 participating Public Health Preparedness Clinics (PHPCs) and polyclinics located islandwide," said MOH.

"We are working to bring in more GP clinics and polyclinics to offer Covid-19 vaccination, to ensure that Covid-19 vaccination remains accessible to the community." 

The ministry also announced that from Mar 1, Covid-19 statistics will be folded into the weekly infectious diseases bulletin along with other diseases such as influenza. 

The expert committee on Covid-19 vaccination (EC19V), which was appointed in October 2020, will hand over its role to the Expert Committee on Immunisation, a standing committee that provides advice on nationally recommended immunisations for children and adults.

The EC19V’s term ends on Mar 31.

"Even as we take these steps to integrate our Covid-19 response into our broader public health programmes, MOH will continue to monitor the Covid-19 situation, both domestic and international, and update our public health strategies to protect the health and well-being of all Singaporeans," said the ministry.

"We seek the support of the public to keep up to date with their vaccination and exercise social responsibility. In this way, we can continue to protect ourselves and our families, especially our seniors and the medically vulnerable." CNA