TraceTogether no longer required in most settings from April 26
Vaccination-differentiated safe management measures (VDS) will no longer be needed at most settings from April 26, except for higher-risk settings such as larger events, food and beverage (F&B) outlets, and nightlife establishments with dancing.
This comes as Singapore's vaccination coverage stands at amongst the highest in the world and Covid-19 case numbers continue to decline.
Hospitals and healthcare workers are also adjusting to handle their higher clinical workload from non-Covid-19 patients.
Speaking at a multi-ministry taskforce on Covid-19 on Friday (April 22), health minister Ong Ye Kung said the key consideration for having vaccinated-differentiated safe management measures (VDS) was that those who were not fully vaccinated had accounted for a disproportionate number of patients falling severely ill or dying.
He said: "So when our hospitals were still under a lot of pressure, VDS is critical in ensuring that we do not exert too much burden on our healthcare system. However, now that the hospital's workload has eased considerably, there is less need now to retain VDS in its current form."
VDS will still continue to apply in higher risk settings, such as nightspots with dancing, where people gather in close proximity with prolonged and close interactions. They will also need to remain at larger events with at least 500 participants at any one time, such as large-scale gala dinners, weddings, and conferences, as these are potential super spreading events, said Mr Ong.
They will also continue to apply at food and beverage (F&B) establishments, including restaurants, coffee shops and hawker centres.
However, F&B establishments will no longer need to conduct VDS checks on their customers. Hawker centres and coffeeshops no longer conduct such checks.
The onus will instead be on the individuals dining in to abide by the rules, with random spot-checks conducted to ensure that only fully vaccinated persons are present.
Workforce vaccination measures will also be lifted.
The Ministry of Health will also stop issuing health-risk notices (HRN) to close contacts of Covid-19 patients from April 26. Individuals infected with Covid-19 will also no longer need to submit details of household contacts online.
However, they should continue to exercise social responsibility, such as by informing close contacts to take necessary precautions, said MOH.
To complement the removal of HRNs, people who test positive for Covid-19 will also no longer need to upload their TraceTogether (TT) data or submit their tokens from April 26.
Most venues will also no longer require the public to check in using the TT application or token except for where VDS checks are still required.
However, the public is still strongly encouraged to keep the application on their mobile phones or keep their tokens should it be used again, such as in response to a new variant.
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