Are vaccinations effective?
Should we worry about all the mass testing exercises lately?
Why is Goofy considered a person and Pluto considered a pet when they’re both dogs?
With the exception of the last one, these are the important questions that have been keeping some of us up at night lately.
Fortunately, our new Health Minister, Daniel Dae Kim, has the answer.
Reader: You mean Ong Ye Kung?
I honestly can’t tell at this point. Case in point:
Okay, back to business.
Health Minister Answers FAQs About COVID-19
Yesterday, Mr Ong took to Facebook to answer some frequently asked questions (FAQs) about the most recent COVID-19 outbreak in the community.
The questions involved the efficacy of vaccinations, the B1617 variant, and mass testing operations.
Here’s what he had to say.
1. I heard many vaccinated people are getting infected and that there’s no point in getting immunised. Is that true?
“No,” Mr Ong said.
Well, that was easy.
He said that in the current outbreak, 78 cases had been fully vaccinated, compared to around 300 cases who were unvaccinated.
Many vaccinated individuals who tested positive were frontline workers, he added.
“International studies continue to show that vaccinations are very effective in preventing infections, and severe illnesses,” he said.
2. I heard the new B1617 variant is airborne and very contagious. Is that true?
According to Mr Ong, the risk of transmission with the B1617 strain depends on several factors.
Limited airflow and poor ventilation tends to increase spread, and a large majority of these infections are in enclosed places with close interactions without masks, he said.
“Hence we closed restaurants and big gatherings. Which is also why a big proportion of infections now actually come from home. To protect your family members, see a doctor immediately if unwell.”
As for whether the variant is airborne, Mr Ong said the coronavirus has always been spread when a person coughs, sneezes, talks or sings, through droplets and aerosols in the air.
“Same for the B1617 variant,” he said.
3. I heard the COVID-19 situation is getting very bad. Is that true?
“Not quite, we are hovering around the same number since 16 May,” the health minister said.
Mr Ong also provided a graph of the three-day moving average of the total community cases, as well as those that were unlinked. Math nerds, rejoice.
“As I had said earlier in a press conference on 16 May, we are monitoring the situation closely; to see if we are trending up, down or flat,” he added.
4. But we are doing so much special ops, including testing residents of HDB blocks. Isn’t that bad?
As you know, the Ministry of Health (MOH) recently completed a mass testing operation for residents of Block 506 Hougang Avenue 8. They are also testing residents at Block 559, Pasir Ris Street 51.
Despite what it looks like, however, Mr Ong thinks this is a good thing.
“Testing is a very effective way to prevent further spread. You should feel safer when you hear all these testing ops. They help us detect and isolate people early, including persons who are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic and would otherwise be missed,” he explained.
“We will be doing even more testing and surveillance moving forward.”
You can check out Mr Daniel Dae Kim’s—sorry, Mr Ong Ye Kung’s—full Facebook post down below:
Feature Image: Facebook (Ong Ye Kung)
Here’s a simplified summary of the South Korea martial law that even a 5-year-old would understand:
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