PM Lee visits site as mandatory Covid-19 testing begins for residents of Block 456 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10
SINGAPORE - Mandatory Covid-19 testing for residents of Block 456 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10 started on Sunday morning (July 25). Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who is one of the MPs for Ang Mo Kio GRC, arrived at about 12.20pm and spoke to residents, shop owners and swabbing staff before leaving around 1pm. The testing operation is being held at the pavilion at Block 460A Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10 and began at 9am on Sunday. The Ministry of Health (MOH) is investigating likely Covid-19 transmission at the block after eight cases of Covid-19 infection was detected in four households. Most of these cases are linked to the Jurong Fishery Port cluster and epidemiological investigations are ongoing, the ministry said on Saturday. It is also testing owners and staff of commercial units at Block 456. Testing is optional for those who have tested negative for Covid-19 infection from July 20 onwards. One of those who went to get tested was Madam Adeline Lum, 43, who headed to the pavilion at about 10.45am. The swab was slightly uncomfortable but the process was smooth, said the customer service officer who lives in Block 456. She added that she is worried about the Covid-19 clusters and the spread o...
Covid-19 swabbing begins for residents of some HDB blocks in Henderson Crescent and Lengkok Bahru
SINGAPORE - Residents of a Housing Board block of flats in Bukit Merah turned up on Monday (June 28) to take mandatory Covid-19 tests that began at 9am. This came after the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Sunday night that four residents from three households in Block 103 Henderson Crescent had tested positive for the coronavirus. At 9am, when The Straits Times visited the pavilion at Block 104B where testing was taking place, there were no queues. Two safe distancing ambassadors were on site. Resident Tan Boon Huay, 71, was one of the first to get the PCR (polymerase chain reaction) swab test. The assistant tailor said she felt uncomfortable during the swab, but the test would give her peace of mind. Ms Tan, who is single, said: "We must accept it, for ourselves and for others. Even though I'm vaccinated and so are my neighbours, there's still a chance of getting the coronavirus." Earlier on Sunday, she had collected a free antigen rapid test (ART) kit from the pavilion. The self-test kits were distributed to Redhill and Bukit Merah residents to help prevent further transmission of the coronavirus. Another resident, Ms Adeline Tan, 60, was also swabbed on Monday, together with he...
Mandatory use of TraceTogether token or app at malls, workplaces, schools to start on June 1
SINGAPORE - From June 1, digital check-ins for contact tracing at places with higher footfall or where people are likely to be in close proximity can only be done using the TraceTogether app or token. These places include shopping malls, workplaces, places of worship, schools, educational institutions, dine-in food and beverage outlets and gyms - where the national digital check-in tool SafeEntry has already been implemented. The mandatory use of TraceTogether comes as more than 90 per cent of the population have either downloaded the app or collected the token, said the Smart Nation and Digital Government Office (SNDGO) and the Ministry of Health (MOH) in a joint statement on Thursday (April 22). With this, other modes of SafeEntry check-in - such as scanning a SafeEntry QR code with a phone camera or the Singpass app - will be discontinued from June 1. The existing requirement for SafeEntry check-ins at individual retail outlets such as supermarkets and departmental stores inside large malls will also be removed when TraceTogether is used for registering check-ins. This set-up is known as TraceTogether-only SafeEntry (TT-only SE). "This is because all visitors would have already ...