SINGAPORE: Nearly three in five “excess deaths” in Singapore during the COVID-19 pandemic were directly caused by the coronavirus, and the remainder were patients who had died of other illnesses within 90 days of being infected.
In a report released on Sunday (Sep 18), the Ministry of Health (MOH) said that Singapore recorded an estimated 2,490 excess deaths during the pandemic from January 2020 to June 2022.
Of these, 1,403 were Singapore residents who died from COVID-19.
The term “excess deaths” refers to the increased death rate during the pandemic, compared to the rate expected in the absence of a pandemic.
Two in five excess deaths were people who had died from other illnesses after being infected with the coronavirus.
“In other words, COVID-19 aggravated existing illnesses, resulting in death,” said MOH.
The Health Ministry noted that compared to other countries, Singapore has managed to keep its COVID-19 death toll low.