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COVID-19: Official Information and Useful Health Tips


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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-02-27/singapore-emerges-as-litmus-test-for-coronavirus-containment?srnd=premium-asia

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As the novel coronavirus starts to gather speed in Europe, the Middle East and the U.S., there’s one place it is seemingly being contained: Singapore.

With no reported virus-related deaths despite 96 cases, and a slowing rate of infection that’s been outpaced by recoveries, the Asian city-state is emerging as a litmus test of whether the deadly pathogen can be, if not contained, then neutralized.

The answer is maybe, and perhaps only with the unique combination of factors that Singapore brings: a top-notch health system, draconian tracing and containment measures, and a small population that’s largely accepting of government’s expansive orders. Few other countries battling an outbreak that’s now infected 82,000 globally and killed over 2,800 can replicate these circumstances.

Singapore’s tally of cases is still inching up but it’s no longer the worst-hit nation outside of China after South Korea saw an over 30-fold increase in a week. Italy, with at least 400 confirmed cases, has now become the epicenter in Europe while Iran has reported an alarming jump in numbers of those infected and dead.

“There seems to be more of a willingness to place the community and society needs over individual liberty and that helps in a public health crisis,” said Kent Sepkowitz, an infectious disease control specialist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

‘Not Hesitate’

Singapore was aggressive out of the gate and has continued to be. It was one of the first countries to impose restrictions on anyone with recent travel history to China and parts of South Korea. It has a strict hospital and home quarantine regimen for potentially infected patients and is extensively tracing anyone they may have been in contact with.

A temperature screening checkpoint at Changi airport in Singapore on Feb. 27.

PhotographerZ: Roslan Rahman/AFP via Getty Images

It’s charging a couple who gave false information on their travel history and taking away residency status from a person who breached his quarantine, among other punitive actions.

Singapore “will not hesitate to take strong action” against rule breakers, Law Minister K. Shanmugam said in a statement Thursday. “The deliberate breaking of the rules, in the current situation, calls for swift and decisive response.”

The consistently forceful posture is in contrast to other Asian nations, who despite being closer geographically to China, have been slower to act. Japan and South Korea are both facing criticism for lax and delayed containment measures that has led to mounting virus cases.

 

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WHO raises global coronavirus risk to maximum level

GENEVA (AFP) - The World Health Organisation on Friday (Feb 28) raised its global risk assessment of the new coronavirus to its highest level after the epidemic spread to sub-Saharan Africa and caused financial markets to plunge.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the risk was being raised to "very high" because of the continued increase in cases and the number of new countries affected in recent days.

These developments "are clearly of concern", Tedros told reporters in Geneva.

GENEVA (AFP) - The World Health Organisation on Friday (Feb 28) raised its global risk assessment of the new coronavirus to its highest level after the epidemic spread to sub-Saharan Africa and caused financial markets to plunge.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the risk was being raised to "very high" because of the continued increase in cases and the number of new countries affected in recent days.

These developments "are clearly of concern", Tedros told reporters in Geneva.

But he added: "We still have a chance of containing this virus, if robust action is taken to detect cases early, isolate and care for patients and trace contacts."

The virus has proliferated around the globe over the past week, emerging on every continent except Antarctica, prompting many governments and businesses to try to stop people travelling or gathering in crowded places.

Switzerland became the latest country to announce drastic measures on Friday, saying all events with more than 1,000 participants would be suspended until March 15.

The ban forced the cancellation of the Geneva International Motor Show - a major item on the global auto industry calendar - that was due to start next week.

Carnival celebrations, rock concerts and a major watchmaking trade show also had to be scrapped.

'STRUGGLING WITH CONTAINMENT'

The virus has killed more than 2,800 people and infected over 83,000 worldwide - the vast majority in China - since it emerged apparently from an animal market in a central Chinese city in late December.

The number of deaths and new infections has been tapering off in China, following unprecedented quarantine efforts locking down tens of millions of people in the worst-hit cities.

But infections elsewhere have started to surge, with Iran, Italy and South Korea becoming the major new hotspots and cases being confirmed in around 50 countries.

"We see a number of countries struggling with containment," said Michael Ryan, head of WHO's health emergencies programme.

The WHO has voiced particular concern about Africa's preparedness, warning that the continent's health care systems were ill-equipped to respond to a Covid-19 epidemic.

Cases had previously been reported in Egypt and Algeria, but not in the sub-Saharan region until Friday when Nigeria reported its first case: an Italian man in densely populated Lagos.

MARKETS TANK

Stock markets around the world have plummeted this week as it has become increasingly clear the virus will take a huge toll on the global economy.

"Stock markets are well on their way to their worst week since the global financial crisis," said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda trading group.

Several companies have said they expect the virus to hit their earnings because of weaker demand.

Oil prices also dived four percent to their lowest levels for more than a year, with Brent oil for April delivery sinking as low as $50.05 a barrel.

Analysts have warned that China, the world's second largest economy, will see a major cut in growth this quarter as the country remains largely paralysed by quarantines and containment measures.

CHINA HOPE

Still, signs in China offered hope that the outbreak could be contained.

China reported 44 more deaths on Friday, raising its toll to 2,788, with 327 new cases - the lowest daily figure for new infections in more than a month.

The main concern for health officials is outside of China, with governments this week forced into increasingly drastic measures in an attempt to battle spiralling epidemics.

The biggest death toll outside China is in Iran, where 34 people have died.

As elsewhere, the virus has mostly killed the elderly or people who had other health conditions.

South Korea also now has the most cases outside China, with more than 2,000 infections and 13 deaths.

The virus has had wide-ranging impact, even forcing K-pop megastars BTS to cancel four Seoul concerts due in April.

CRUISE SHIP VICTIM
In Japan, the health ministry said a British man who was on board a coronavirus-stricken cruise ship quarantined near Tokyo had died, bringing the death toll to six.

The unidentified man's death is the latest linked to infections on the Diamond Princess cruise ship, where more than 700 other people tested positive for the illness.

The death comes as the governor of Japan's rural northern island of Hokkaido urged people to stay at home this weekend in a desperate effort to contain the outbreak.

In Europe, the largest epicentre is Italy with 650 cases and 17 deaths - mostly in cities in the north.

Wide-ranging measures to halt the spread of the virus have affected tens of millions of people in northern Italy, with schools closed and cultural and sporting events cancelled.

Experts said the virus had probably "circulated unnoticed for several weeks" before the first confirmed cases - possibly since January.

Belarus, Denmark, Iceland, Lithuania, Mexico and New Zealand were the latest countries to report new cases.

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https://www.straitstimes.com/world/united-states/how-long-can-coronavirus-survive-on-surfaces

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WASHINGTON (REUTERS) - As a new coronavirus spreads quickly around the world, US health officials say they are "aggressively" assessing how long it can survive on surfaces to better understand the risk of transmission.

Based on what is known about similar coronaviruses, disease experts say the new outbreak of the virus, named Covid-19, is mainly spread from person to person through coughing or sneezing. Contact with faecal matter from an infected person may also transmit the virus.

The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says it may be possible for a person to become infected by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose or eyes.

An analysis of 22 earlier studies of similar coronaviruses, including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers) published online this month in the Journal of Hospital Infection, concluded that human coronaviruses can remain infectious on inanimate surfaces for up to nine days at room temperature.

However, they can quickly be rendered inactive using common disinfectants, and may also dissipate at higher temperatures, the authors wrote. It is not yet clear, however, whether the new coronavirus behaves in a similar way.

"On copper and steel it's pretty typical, it's pretty much about two hours," CDC Director Dr Robert Redfield told US lawmakers on Thursday (Feb 27), referring to how long the new coronavirus may be active on those types of materials.

"But I will say on other surfaces - cardboard or plastic - it's longer, and so we are looking at this."

The agency said there is likely a very low risk of spread from products or packaging that are shipped over a period of days or weeks at ambient temperatures.

A CDC spokeswoman, in an e-mailed statement, said the agency is still looking into how contagious the virus can be when deposited on more common, everyday surfaces.

The Food and Drug Administration this week said it has no evidence that Covid-19 has been transmitted from imported goods, but the situation remains "dynamic" and the agency said it will assess and update guidance as needed.

 

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COVID-19: Places to avoid travelling to during this period

MOH has travel advisories for Mainland China, South Korea, Japan, northern Italy and Iran

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In light of rising numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Japan, northern Italy and Iran, MOH announced on 3 Mar 2020 that travellers are advised to avoid non-essential travel to South Korea, Japan, northern Italy and Iran.

https://www.gov.sg/article/covid-19-places-to-avoid-travelling-to-during-this-period

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