Cases Of COVID-19 Infection Soar, Singapore Adjusts Life Strategy With COVID-19

Illustration of COVID-19 in Singapore. (Wikimedia Commons/ZKang123)

JAKARTA - Singaporean authorities have warned of the possible need to reimpose COVID-19 restrictions, if a new outbreak of the highly contagious Delta variant cannot be contained, putting at risk a shift and adjustment of life plans to the virus.

The number of new COVID-19 infections in Singapore doubled in the past week, according to the country's Ministry of Health, to more than 1,200 cases as of last weekend.

However, to date, Singapore has recorded 68,901 cases of COVID-19 infection with 55 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

On Monday, Singapore's COVID-19 Task Force Chief, Lawrence Wong, said it was not only the daily total number of cases that were of concern to his country's government but also the extent of the virus' spread.

"We know from the experience of other countries when cases rise so sharply, there will be more ICU cases and more people dying from the virus", he said.

Singapore implemented an aggressive 'COVID zero' policy during the pandemic, imposing strict restrictions including closing restaurants, closing borders, and enforcing social distancing.

But in June, the government announced plans to move towards living with a COVID strategy, seeking to control the outbreak with a COVID-19 vaccine and monitoring hospitalizations rather than limiting citizens' lives.

"The bad news is, COVID-19 may never go away. The good news is, it's possible to live a normal life with it in our midst", Singapore's top COVID-19 official wrote in a press release in June.

It has one of the highest rates of COVID-19 vaccination in the world, with more than 80 percent of its population fully vaccinated. Singapore has begun easing some of its COVID-19 restrictions, allowing fully vaccinated people to eat in restaurants and congregate in groups of five, up from two throughout August.

But the new outbreak has halted further reopening, Singapore's COVID-19 Task Force Chief Wong said yesterday. He said Singapore would seek to contain new outbreaks through more aggressive contact tracing as well as "ring-fencing" cases and clusters.

Mandatory testing for high-risk workers will also be increased, once a week instead of every two weeks. And, the list of workers subject to mandatory testing will be expanded to include retail, delivery, and public transport staff.

Singapore has also banned all workplace gatherings from Wednesday. Wong encouraged residents to avoid unnecessary social events as they try to contain the outbreak.

He said it was a reflection of Singapore's new policies and high vaccination rates, the country was able to maintain a level of openness during the new outbreak.

"But if despite our best efforts we find the number of serious cases requiring oxygen in ICU care is rising sharply, then we may not have cases other than, tightening our overall posture, so we shouldn't rule it out."