Why won’t Singapore identify China.

Singapore’s Health Minister Ong Yee Kung told Parliament on Monday that the government is not imposing new restrictions on travelers from China because limited flight capacity combined with current border policies mean that fewer imported cases – and even fewer serious cases – come from China. .

He said the government was “soon aware” that some Singaporeans were worried that visitors from China could lead to a spike in infections.

But the rate of travel between Singapore and China is “very low” – fewer than 1,000 people are arriving from China every day, he said.

“We currently operate 38 weekly flights from China to Singapore, compared to 400 flights before Covid,” he said.

Ong acknowledged that a new, more dangerous strain could emerge from China as the virus spreads among its 1.4 billion people, but said it has not yet been discovered.

Ong said Singapore is tracking this through a non-profit organization called GISAID, which is collecting viral sequence data from major cities and provinces in China, including Beijing, Shanghai and Sichuan, which is being processed by GISAID’s Singapore office.

Although there are “gaps in the data,” Ong said, the data so far show that the outbreak in China is caused by variants known and circulating in other regions of the world — namely BA.5.2 and BF.7.

So far, more than 12 countries have announced new rules for visitors from China. Ong said Singapore did not because it already had effective border measures.

“Many countries have dismantled all their border measures. “Singapore … anticipates these risks and has taken appropriate measures.”

“Many Singaporeans forget about it,” he said, adding that all travelers must be fully vaccinated or test negative for Covid before entry, a requirement similar to what Spain recently announced for travelers from China.

South Korea reports that up to 80 percent of imported cases come from China, while Ong said in December that less than 5 percent of Singapore’s imported cases – 200 people – came from China, adding, “ASEAN countries are overcounted.” 50%.”

In the same month, seven people who entered the country were seriously ill, and only one came from China, he said.

Most of the returnees from these countries and regions were Singaporeans. “These are not large numbers, so the impact on our health care system was very small.”

The government’s “overriding concern” is the emergence of a new, more dangerous variant that could escape vaccine protection – the “nightmare variant”. [that] It could bring us back to square one,” Ong said.

If that happens, “until a new and effective vaccine is developed, we may need to reinstate measures such as strict border controls, quarantines for travelers, and social restrictions, including limits on group sizes.”

Singapore will remain plugged into the “global intelligence system” to monitor this, he said.

Another key concern, he said, is maintaining Singapore’s healthcare system. In the early stages of the outbreak, infections were the government’s top priority, but now that vaccines are being released, the focus is on severe infections, he said.

By the end of 2022, 60% of those 18 and older will be up-to-date on their vaccinations.

“In the last 30 days, the number of Covid-19 patients in the intensive care unit is in the low single digits,” he said. “So if we have broad vaccine coverage, we can treat Covid-19 as a chronic disease.”

Ong also cast doubt on the effectiveness of some travel rules imposed on Chinese travelers.

1. By the time PCR tests arrive, “they’re too late, because the travelers are already in your borders” and they’re sensitive, meaning they “give a high number of positive cases from countries that have experienced or had a big wave” because recovered travelers can shed bits of virus that have been dead for weeks.
2. Tests of waste water from aircraft The flight time from China to Singapore is not that long, so depending on solid waste will have some benefit.
3. Pre-departure tests “may be useful… [to] Reduce the number of imported infections,” but the low travel rate between Singapore and China “will also limit the number of imported infections.”

Ong added that if Singapore were to screen all travelers from China, questions would be raised about whether travelers from other regions would have more infections and more severe cases.

“Also, with inspiration. [pre-departure tests] Are we contributing to an international precedent for testing travelers from a part of the world with a high number of infections, travelers from countries experiencing a wave of infections?

Ong added: “When we face another wave of infections, how will other countries handle travelers from Singapore?”

Singapore seems to remain in the good graces of the Chinese government and its residents. Rain said Chinese travelers are now heading to Singapore and Thailand because “both countries have welcomed us.”

Singapore Airlines resumed passenger service from Singapore to Beijing at the end of December. To begin with, the service will only run twice a month.

However, flights between Singapore and China are “less than 10 per cent of pre-Covid flights” – accounting for 1.5 per cent of total flights from Singapore’s Changi Airport, Singapore’s Transport Minister S Iswaran said.

He said overall passenger traffic and weekly flights at Changi Airport have returned to 80% of pre-epidemic levels.

“Singapore and Chinese airlines have requested to operate more flights between the two countries,” Iswaran said, adding that the government is taking a “cautious and disciplined” approach to restoring air links with China.

Currently, more than 60% of inbound travelers from China are Singaporeans, permanent residents or long-term pass holders, Iswaran said.

“China’s opening to the world is great news and something we expect,” Ong said, adding that the government would carefully adjust travel rates “at least until the wave of infections clearly subsides in China.”