1 September 2020
SINGAPORE - Singapore confirmed 40 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday afternoon (Sept 1), taking the country's total infection numbers to 56,852.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) said there was one community case, a work pass holder, and seven imported cases. The imported cases had been placed on stay-home notice upon arrival in Singapore.
More details will be announced on Tuesday night.
On Monday, a total of 90 employees and residents of a nursing home were tested for Covid-19 after a former worker who went back to the Philippines became infected.
All the results from those swabbed at the Lee Ah Mooi Old Age Home in Silat Avenue came back negative, MOH said on Monday night.
The ministry said it had been informed that a care employee who previously worked at the home had tested positive for Covid-19 on Sunday in the Philippines.
Her last day at the nursing home was last Wednesday, and she had not displayed any acute respiratory infection symptoms while she was at work.
As a precautionary measure, MOH and the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) worked with the Lee Ah Mooi Home to test 90 staff and residents who were identified as possible contacts of the case.
All physical visits to the nursing home have also been suspended until further notice, said the AIC.
The ward and affected areas have been thoroughly cleaned and disinfected, and the staff's use of personal protective equipment will also be enhanced.
This was not the first infection at the Lee Ah Mooi Old Age Home. On March 31, the first coronavirus case was confirmed at its branch in Thomson Lane. A total of 16 staff and residents were subsequently infected.
There were 41 new coronavirus cases confirmed in Singapore on Monday. They included three community cases, comprising one work pass holder and two work permit holders, said MOH.
There were also seven imported cases on Monday, comprising two Singaporeans, four permanent residents and a work permit holder.
The six Singaporeans and PRs had returned to Singapore from India between Aug 17 and Aug 19, and from Malaysia on Aug 17. The remaining case is currently employed in Singapore and arrived from India on Aug 19.
The average number of new daily cases in the community in a week has increased from two cases two weeks ago to three in the past week.
The number of unlinked cases in the community in a week has remained stable at an average of one case per day over the same period.
With 72 cases discharged on Monday, 55,643 patients have fully recovered from the disease.
A total of 78 patients remain in hospital, while 1,049 are recuperating in community facilities. None is in intensive care.
Singapore has had 27 deaths from Covid-19 complications, while 15 who tested positive have died of other causes.
Globally, the virus outbreak, which began in December last year, has infected more than 25.6 million people. More than 854,200 people have died.
40 new Covid-19 cases in Singapore, including 1 in community and 7 imported
