SINGAPORE: All COVID-19 vaccination-differentiated measures will be lifted from Oct 10, with restrictions no longer in place for dining in, nightlife establishments and events with more than 500 participants.
“We have learned to live with the COVID-19 virus, having weathered several infection waves and progressively lifted safe management measures,” said the Ministry of Health (MOH) in a news release on Friday (Oct 7).
” As we resume normalcy in our daily activities, we will lift the vaccination-differentiated safe management measures fully from Oct 10, 2022.”
This means there will be no vaccination-differentiated restrictions for:
- Events with more than 500 participants at any one time
- Nightlife establishments where dancing among patrons is one of the intended activities
- Dining in at food and beverage establishments, including hawker centres.
“(The measures have) served us well in our journey to safe reopening,” said MOH.
The ministry added that the measures have helped to protect those who are not fully vaccinated by reducing their exposure to settings with a higher risk of transmission, and in turn keeping the healthcare system from being overwhelmed when population-wide vaccination and infection rates were not yet sufficiently high.
However, even as the measures are lifted, people who are not fully vaccinated continue to face a higher risk of severe disease, said the Health Ministry.
“We urge such persons to come forward to be vaccinated, or continue to take their own precautions and minimise social interactions to protect themselves.”
MOH also reminded members of the public to continue to remain vigilant and be ready to respond to any dangerous new variants, even as most safe management measures are eased.
It added that should the situation worsen, necessary measures may be put in place at “short notice” to protect the public, safeguard the healthcare workers and conserve hospital capacity.
This may include “standing up” an appropriate level of vaccination-differentiated measures, as was necessary during the height of the pandemic.