SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore’s health ministry reported a record 26,032 COVID-19 infections on Tuesday and said it may take a few weeks before the current transmission wave peaks and subsides.
“While the number of patients needing oxygen supplementation and intensive care unit (ICU) care is not high, there is a surge in demand for hospital beds, mostly for patients with underlying chronic illnesses to recover,” the health ministry said in a statement on Tuesday evening.
It reiterated that people with mild or no symptoms who had tested positive should consider self-recovery at home to reduce the pressure on healthcare workers.
Of the nearly 294,000 cases over the last 28 days, 99.7% had mild or no symptoms.
About 91% of Singapore’s 5.5 million population have been fully vaccinated, with a further 66% receiving a booster jab.
(Reporting by Aradhana Aravindan in Singapore; Editing by Ed Davies)
