Singapore will most likely face a wave of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 soon. The reason is, 70 percent of cases of the total COVID-19 infection in Singapore are the Omicron variant.
Because it has started to dominate, the proportion of Omicron’s COVID-19 cases in the future could reach 90 percent of the total reported cases. As of Friday (21/1) alone, the total cases jumped to 3,155, of which 2,794 were local cases and 361 imported cases. As of the previous Thursday, ‘only’ recorded 1,472 cases.
“In fact, the proportion is likely to be higher, perhaps close to 90 percent or more. Omicron clearly dominates the Delta variant in Singapore,” multi-ministerial task force Gan Kim Yong said at a press conference, quoted by Channel News Asia.
The Ministry of Health warned that Omicron’s COVID-19 infections could double. The number is likely to soar to exceed 15,000 cases per day.
“Given the more contagious Omicron variant, it is likely that we will see a significant surge soon. Cases could double every two to three days and could reach 10,000 to 15,000, or even more, per day,” the ministry said in a media release.
Even so, most cases of Omicron have mild symptoms. Especially those who have been fully vaccinated and who have received booster vaccinations.
“The percentage of those who need oxygen supplementation, intensive care or dying is much lower than during the Delta wave. This is in line with the experience of other countries such as South Africa and the UK,” said Gan.
Given Omicron’s lower severity, MOH is focusing on the number of patients in the intensive care unit rather than the number of new cases.
“Nevertheless, the Omicron’s higher transmissibility suggests that we cannot be caught off guard, as an uncontrolled increase in the overall number of cases could still push hospital and ICU admissions to unmanageable levels,” he added.
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