“We will treat this as an endemic disease,” Singapore’s health minister said. (Representative)
Singapore:
Singapore is experiencing a new COVID-19 wave, with more people expected to fall ill and be hospitalized in the coming weeks, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung warned on Friday.
Ong Ye Kung said estimated daily cases have risen from about 1,000 three weeks ago to 2,000 in the past two weeks. However, the government will treat this as an “endemic disease,” he said.
The surge of these recent cases is driven by mainly two variants – the EG.5 and its sublineage HK.3 – both of which are descendants of the XBB Omicron variant.
“Together, they now account for more than 75 percent of our daily cases,” Ong Ye Kung told Channel News Asia here.
However, he added that there are no plans to impose social restrictions, as in the last wave that took place from March to April. During the peak in April, the number of infections rose to around 4,000 cases per day.
“We will treat this as an endemic disease, which is in line with our strategy, and we will live with it,” he said.
‘After all, there are no indications that the new variants have a greater risk of serious illness than previous variants.
“All indications show that current vaccines continue to work well in protecting us from severe disease if infected by these new variants,” he said.
But he warned Singapore not to be less vigilant against COVID-19. “In the coming weeks, we should expect more people to get sick, and if they do, hospitalizations will rise. The waiting time will increase,” the Health Minister said.
He shared findings from a Ministry of Health (MOH) study, which showed how severe the incidence of serious illness was during the peak of Singapore’s latest wave of infections in April.
Among those who are ‘best protected’ – those who have had at least three mRNA injections and a natural infection in the past 12 months – the incidence of serious disease is about 10 per 100,000 people.
The ‘least protected’ group, or those who have no minimum protection and no recorded infection, are five times more likely to become seriously ill if infected with COVID-19. The incidence rate for such individuals is more than 50 per 100,000 people.
He then moved on to another finding that he described as the “most important.” “For individuals who are well protected with three mRNA injections plus an infection, but all of these were acquired more than twelve months ago, their incidence of severe disease is also about 50 per 100,000 population – not much different from those who have no vaccination got. or protection,” the Channel told the minister.
“This is a clear indication that protection is waning. And this happens around the twelve-month interval, based on our research.” Speaking at a speech, Ong Ye Kung advised seniors or people who are medically vulnerable due to an underlying illness to take necessary precautions such as wearing a mask in crowded areas.
“But most importantly, seniors and vulnerable people are advised to keep their vaccination up to date, which means taking a vaccination at least once a year,” he said.
“As I have said before, the COVID-19 virus has not gotten any milder since the pandemic crisis. It is we who have become stronger and more resilient, and that is due to both vaccinations and safe recovery from infections.” “But like all protection, it will wear off over time.” The Ministry of Health (MOH) continues to offer free COVID-19 vaccinations at its various vaccination centres, he said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
