Covid possibly peaked in Singapore, says minister but experts cautious

The latest wave of COVID-19 cases in Singapore has possibly peaked, and there is no need for additional measures, like wearing a face mask mandate, to be implemented, said Minister for Health (MOH) Ong Ye Kung.

We might have a slight surge, but I think more or less, we are seeing the peak of this wave, Channel News Asia quoted Ong as saying on Friday at the soft opening of a health campus at Woodlands in northern Singapore.

However, having about 600 to 700 hospital beds taken up by COVID-19 patients is quite a strain 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." he added.

"Nevertheless, I think our assessment remains ... that we can withstand this without additional SMMs (safe management measures)," said Ong.

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.

It is especially important for seniors or those with underlying illnesses to receive their vaccination once a year as they are particularly vulnerable, he added.

Ong said that MOH will work to improve the availability of vaccines by increasing the number of general practitioners (GPs) that administer COVID-19 vaccines and having it be part of the Healthier SG programme.

The seven-day moving average estimated daily number of COVID-19 cases in Singapore has been dropping in recent days, decreasing from 7,730 on December 17 to 6,820 the following day and then 6,530 cases on December 19.

He said many people have asked him to reinstate the mandate to wear masks, especially on public transport.

If it is necessary to do so, Singapore will mandate it, he said, but for this wave, we can withstand this without additional safe-distancing measures.

Nevertheless, the minister appealed to everyone, When you are sick, do wear a mask, do stay at home.

If you have to come into contact with someone, then wear a mask.

Ong reiterated the importance of being up to date with Covid-19 vaccination, at least once a year, especially if you are senior, and have underlying conditions.

He said this is necessary because the effect of the vaccine wears off in about one to 1.5 years (18 months).