Minister: COVID-19 Cases in Dorms Should Fall as More Tests Are Done

By
Boon Hun
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Yesterday saw one of the lowest daily cases Singapore has reported for a long time now.

12 new Covid-19 cases; 1 case in the community, 4 imported cases and 7 dormitory cases.

Now, if you’re thinking 7 is low enough but…it could be lower, just know that you’re not alone in thinking that.

Handsome face Mr Lawrence Wong, who is the Minister of Education and the second Minister of Finance, also thinks that it can go lower.

Minister: COVID-19 Cases in Dorms Should Fall as More Tests Are Done

At the virtual press conference which revealed a lot of upcoming changes to Covid-19 measures in Singapore, Minister Wong says that he expects the number of Covid-19 cases from the dormitories to fall further as workers undergo more testing.

He acknowledges that no Covid-19 test is “foolproof”, as shown by the fact that positive Covid-19 cases from the dormitories are being reported daily despite being cleared.

“Even the best test is not a hundred per cent sensitive. So there will be a very, very low level of ongoing transmission.”

However, he pointed out to something they’ve done earlier in the pandemic to essential workers who’ve moved out to temporary housing.

They tested them again, and again.

“In order to ensure everyone’s safety, we tested them one time, but then we put them through a second test, a third test. And even in the second and third cycles for that group of workers… we continued to pick up positive cases.”

It was previously mentioned that by doing regular testing and picking up positive cases as fast as possible, it can help reduce the chances of transmission.

The workers staying at dormitories, Mr Wong noted, is now in the same situation as essential workers earlier.

With more “cycles of testing” completed, the number of cases should fall.

Another Minister: Won’t Hit Zero Unless We Have Vaccine

Now, if you’re dreaming of a tomorrow where they say there are zero cases reported today, you’ll have to wait for quite a bit.

Health Minister Gan Kim Yong merely pointed out that having zero new cases in Singapore is impossible unless we have the vaccine.

The tricky bit about Covid-19, he explained, is that it is transmissible even if the carrier is showing no symptoms.

Just because there are no cases detected doesn’t mean they don’t exist.

The Routine Rostered Testing can still miss cases, given its 14-day schedule.

Individuals might be infected in-between tests and missed being picked up until their next RRT comes along.

That’s the reason why MOH is now increasing the frequency of testing for high-risk areas, like Toh Guan dormitory, where workers are tested every 7 days.

Don’t celebrate even if one day, you see 0 community cases and 0 dormitory cases.

It doesn’t mean that the next day will still be 0.

“There’s no possibility of zero cases in the whole of Singapore until we have the vaccine available… Even if we one day see zero cases in the dormitories and zero cases in the community, we cannot afford to celebrate because the day after that it may not be zero.”

MOH: Low Prevalence in Community Transmission

After hearing all about how tricky Covid-19 is, you’re now wondering if it’s not the same case for community cases.

While there’s still a need to maintain vigilance against Covid-19 in Singapore, you’ll be happy to know that the Ministry of Health confirmed low transmission within the community in Singapore.

They came to this conclusion after almost 10,000 tests from taxi and PHV drivers in Singapore returned negative, and over 750 stallholders and food delivery personnel in Marine Parade tested negative as well.

You can find out more here.

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Boon Hun
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