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MOH urges public to 'exercise caution', comply with Covid-19 rules over Chinese New Year period

SINGAPORE — The authorities on Friday (Jan 21) urged Singaporeans to exercise caution during the Chinese New Year festive period and comply with existing Covid-19 safety rules. 

The Ministry of Health suggested that individuals take an antigen rapid test before attending Chinese New Year gatherings.
The Ministry of Health suggested that individuals take an antigen rapid test before attending Chinese New Year gatherings.
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  • MOH reminded the public that the permissible group size for social gatherings remains at five people
  • The maximum number of unique visitors for each household remains at five people daily
  • MOH said the Covid-19 situation remains under control, with 14 patients in ICU as of Jan 20
  • But it expects a sharp rise in cases, with cases doubling every two to three days, which could reach 10,000 to 15,000 or even more daily
  • As Omicron infection is less severe than Delta, hospitalisations and deaths are expected to experience “a gentler rise” compared to overall case numbers

SINGAPORE — The authorities on Friday (Jan 21) urged Singaporeans to exercise caution during the Chinese New Year festive period and comply with existing Covid-19 safety rules. 

The Chinese New Year public holidays fall on Feb 1 and 2 this year.

In a statement on Friday, the Ministry of Health (MOH) reminded people that the permissible group size for social gatherings remains at five, and the maximum number of unique visitors for each household remains at five people daily. 

“Individuals may wish to take an antigen rapid test in advance of such gatherings, particularly if there will be elderly or unvaccinated family members present,” MOH added.

It also reminded the public that reunion dinners and other Chinese New Year meals at food-and-beverage establishments will continue to be subject to prevailing Covid-19 safety rules.

Multiple table bookings for groups larger than five are not permitted, except for those from the same household.

Large-scale events, including religious processions and dinner banquets, will continue to be disallowed to avoid superspreading events. Dinner banquets also include company-organised meals or "tuan bai" gatherings.

UPDATE ON COVID-19 SITUATION

MOH said that the Covid-19 situation in Singapore remains under control, with the number of people in intensive care units (ICU) remaining low at 14 as of Thursday. 

This is despite the rising number of positive cases from polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests — from around 800 daily last week to 1,472 cases on Thursday. 

The local cases also formed a large and growing majority at 1,133 cases, compared to 339 imported cases.

With the expanded use of Protocol 2, there has been an increasing number of people testing positive on antigen rapid tests, with about 800 patients on average daily testing positive at healthcare facilities in the past week.

Under Protocol 2, individuals who test positive on an antigen rapid test must isolate themselves for 72 hours and can leave their home only after the third day of isolation if they test negative for Covid-19.

“As we make more pervasive use of antigen rapid tests in lieu of PCR tests, it is timely for us to publish the number of positive cases from antigen rapid tests seen at healthcare facilities daily, alongside the number of PCR positive cases,” MOH said.

It is expecting a sharp rise in cases, with cases doubling every two to three days, which could reach 10,000 to 15,000 or even more daily.

However, with data showing that infections from the Omicron coronavirus strain are less severe compared to the Delta variant, hospitalisations and deaths are expected to experience “a gentler rise” compared to the steeper climb in overall case numbers, MOH added.

“Given Omicron’s lower severity, we should focus our attention on the numbers in intensive care instead of case numbers.

“Nevertheless, Omicron’s higher transmissibility means that we cannot let our guard down, as an uncontrolled rise in overall case numbers could still push hospital and intensive care unit admissions to unmanageable levels.”

The ministry also said that unvaccinated individuals will continue to disproportionately contribute to the number of severe cases requiring acute medical care, especially the elders.

It noted that 12 per cent of non-fully vaccinated cases aged 60 and above were critically ill in intensive care or had died, compared with 1 per cent of fully vaccinated cases of the same age groups.

“With Omicron’s higher transmissibility, the number of individuals with severe symptoms could be even higher than the earlier Delta wave simply because more individuals will be infected. This will again strain our healthcare capacity.”

The ministry urged the public to get vaccinated and receive their boosters soon.

Related topics

Covid-19 Omicron MOH Chinese New Year Covid-19 testing antigen rapid test

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