Singapore: The latest wave of Covid-19 cases in Singapore has probably peaked and there is no need to implement additional measures, such as mandatory mask-wearing, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said.
“We might have a slight increase, but I think we’re more or less seeing the peak of this wave,” Ong quoted Ong as saying to Channel News Asia on Friday at the elegant opening of a fitness campus in Woodlands, northern Singapore.
However, the fact that between 600 and 700 hospital beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients places a heavy burden on the system, the minister noted.
“We are a 10,000 bed-strong system. To take up 600 or 700 beds, it’s six-seven per cent, which is not small. It’s a significant workload on our healthcare workers and our system.”
“However, I think our assessment is still . . . that we can cope with this without more MMS (safe control measures),” Ong said.
Noting that the estimated infection numbers have come down over the past few days, he said, “The indications are that we have plateaued.” Experts say hospitalisation and the need for intensive care always lag infections, which have been rising for four weeks running – from 10,726 infections in the week of Nov 12-18, to 58,300 in the week of December 10-16.
“We have to remember that severe cases will typically peak after the mild cases peak, so even if the peak cases have already come, we may need to wait a while before the impact on the healthcare system starts to get better,” warned Associate Professor Alex Cook of the National University of Singapore’s Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health.
“Just because the cases dipped does not yet mean the wave has peaked, and the wave isn’t over until cases have come down again,” The Straits Times quoted Cook as saying.
Acknowledging that the upcoming Christmas and New Year holidays will bring chances for the virus to spread, Minister Ong encouraged Singaporeans to exercise personal responsibility by wearing a mask when sick and staying at home and continuing to be up to date with vaccinations.
Especially older people or people with underlying conditions should be vaccinated once a year, as they are especially vulnerable, he added.
Ong said the Ministry of Health will improve vaccine availability by expanding the number of general practitioners (GPs) administering Covid-19 vaccines and integrating them into the Healthier SG program.
The seven-day rolling average of the estimated number of Covid-19 cases in Singapore has declined in recent days, from 7,730 on Dec. 17 to 6,820 the next day and then to 6,530 cases on Dec. 19.
He said many other people had asked him to reinstate the mask requirement, especially on public transportation.
If necessary, Singapore will make it mandatory, he said, but in this wave “we can face it without further safety measures. “
The minister appealed to everyone: “When you are sick, wear a mask and stay at home. “
“If you want to come into contact with someone, wear a mask. ” Ong reiterated the importance of being up to date with the Covid-19 vaccine, “at least once a year, especially if you are an older person and have underlying diseases. ” medical conditions”.
He said this is necessary because the effect of the vaccine wears off in about one to 1.5 years (18 months).