Coronavirus: Singapore reverses decision to waive treatment fees for visitors as cases hit 160
- Elsewhere in Asia, Brunei confirms its first case and infection numbers rise in Indonesia and Malaysia
- Diplomats have flown out of North Korea, where not a single case has been reported but strict rules have been imposed
Singapore on Monday reversed its decision to waive fees for all coronavirus patients in the city state, a U-turn that will affect short-term pass holders who will now have to pay for treatment.
“In view of the rising number of Covid-19 infections globally, and the expected rise in the number of confirmed cases in Singapore, we will need to prioritise the resources at our public hospitals,” the Health Ministry said in a statement.
Singapore citizens and residents will still be eligible to have the treatment fee waived, and visitors will still have testing fees waived, officials said.
Elsewhere in Asia, Brunei on Monday reported its first case of coronavirus. A 53-year-old local man tested positive for the virus after returning to the sultanate on March 3 from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the Ministry of Health said.
Indonesia on Monday confirmed a further 13 cases, including 11 Indonesians and two foreigners, raising its total confirmed cases to 19.
Achmad Yurianto, a health ministry official, said that the ages of the newly confirmed cases ranged from 16 to 59 and that some had interacted with the country’s first two patients announced a week ago.
In Malaysia, officials announced 18 new cases, bringing the country’s total to 117. One of the newly identified patients travelled to Iran last month before being diagnosed on March 8, the Health Ministry said.
In North Korea, several embassies closed on Monday as many diplomats were flown out following weeks of tight quarantine restrictions imposed by Pyongyang over the spread of the novel coronavirus.
North Korea has not confirmed a single infection but has imposed strict rules, including closing its borders and putting thousands of its own people into isolation.
It has also subjected hundreds of foreigners – including diplomats – to a virtual lockdown in their own premises.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un warned last month of “serious consequences” if the virus reached his country, which has banned tourists and suspended international trains and flights.
Coronavirus: Japan’s travel restrictions for China, South Korea kick in
A UN human rights investigator urged North Korea to allow medical and humanitarian experts full access amid concern the coronavirus could hit malnourished people hard.
Tomas Ojea Quintana, UN special rapporteur for rights in North Korea, acknowledged the “extensive efforts” by Pyongyang to prevent an outbreak.
“As the supreme leader of the country recently recognised, a widespread infection in the DPRK would entail serious consequences for the people,” he told the UN Human Rights Council, referring to Kim.
“The reality is that many North Koreans are malnourished, suffering from stunted growth, and thus more vulnerable if infected.”
In Australia, two schools in Sydney closed on Monday after three students tested positive, raising Australia’s confirmed cases to more than 80 as the government prepares a fiscal stimulus to ward off recession. Three people have died in Australia.
Thailand asks visitors from outbreak ‘danger zones’ to prove they’re not infected
Australia has seen a worrying increase in coronavirus cases in the past couple of days, although Brendan Murphy, the nation’s chief medical officer, said that the majority were travellers who caught the virus abroad, with only one instance of community transmission.
Two year 10 students at Sydney’s St Patrick’s Marist College had tested positive for the virus while a year 7 pupil tested positive at the Willoughby Girls High School.
“This is likely to be the new norm,” said Brad Hazzard, the minister of health for New South Wales state.
Additional reporting by Reuters, Agence France-Presse
