Coronavirus: Singapore says Delta wave subsiding; Japan’s death rate plummets
- Singapore’s health ministry says it will end its daily press releases on infection statistics from Wednesday ‘as the current wave of Delta infections subsides’
- Elsewhere, Japan’s death rate has fallen significantly, while Indonesia has axed its planned restrictions for the year-end period as vaccinations pick up
Singapore has seen a sharp drop in Covid-19 community cases over the last month, along with significant easing in local hospitals.
The city state logged 638 local cases on December 6, more than 400 below the same day last week, and less than half what it was two weeks ago. The weekly infection rate has been below 1, indicating cases are declining, for the last 24 days. It is currently at 0.64, the second-fastest week-on-week drop in cases since data was made available.
The Ministry of Health said it would end its daily press releases on infection statistics from December 7 “as the current wave of Delta infections subsides”, though the same infection statistics will continue to be published on its website daily. Those press statements, released near midnight every day, have been closely watched for trends to indicate whether Singapore might tighten or ease measures.
Singapore has one of the world’s best vaccination rates, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. 87 per cent of the total population is fully vaccinated, while 96 per cent of those eligible are fully inoculated. Some 28 per cent have also received booster jabs. Government officials have said jabs for those age 5-11 will be offered soon.
The country has stuck to a path of slowly easing its virus restrictions, which remain among the world’s toughest. Work from home remains the default, groups are limited to a maximum of five at a time, and masks are required almost everywhere outside the home. The government has said it will not ease further at this time, citing the potential Omicron threat.
Singapore increased testing for inbound vaccinated travellers and has restricted travel from southern Africa to ward off the import of omicron. The city state has not had a community case of the omicron variant yet, though two people flying in from South Africa have been confirmed to have the new variant, while a third is suspected of it. All three are in isolation.
