The Ministry of Health (MOH) has preliminarily confirmed 448 new cases of Covid-19 at 12pm on Thursday, May 21.

This brings the total number of reported cases in Singapore to 29,812.

The majority of the reported infections continue to be work permit holders residing in foreign worker dormitories.

13 cases are either Singaporeans or Permanent Residents.

Of these, seven cases were picked up from our active surveillance and screening of nursing home residents and preschool staff, and four are part of a family cluster linked to a dormitory.

Epidemiological investigations are ongoing for the other two cases.

Further updates will be shared in a separate announcement from the Ministry on Thursday evening.

Previous cases

The number of new cases reported daily has been generally on a slight downward trend overall.

Here are the number of new cases reported per day so far in May:

May 1: 932

May 2: 447

May 3: 657

May 4: 573

May 5: 632

May 6: 788

May 7: 741

May 8: 768

May 9: 753

May 10: 876

May 11: 486

May 12: 884

May 13: 675

May 14: 752

May 15: 793

May 16: 465

May 17: 682

May 18: 305

May 19: 451

May 20: 570

Singapore exiting Circuit Breaker in 3 stages, starting June 2

The Covid-19 Multi-Ministry Taskforce on Tuesday announced plans to gradually reopen Singapore in three stages starting June 2, in what Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong describes as Singapore "exiting" Circuit Breaker.

• Phase 1 (Safe Re-opening)
• Phase 2 (Safe Transition)
• Phase 3 (Safe Nation)

Phase 1: Some businesses can reopen, students and children to return to school

In Phase 1, which begins on June 2, everyone should continue to wear masks and only leave home for essential activities.

Seniors are advised to continue staying at home as much as possible as they are a vulnerable group.

Economic activities that do not pose a high risk of infection will be resumed first, but social, recreational and entertainment activities that involve congregations of larger groups of people will have to remain closed.

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Changi Airport will also allow overseas travellers to transit here from June 2 onwards, with movement restrictions and careful segregation measures in place.

According to Health Minister Gan Kim Yong, Phase 1 is expected to last minimally four weeks.

Phase 2

If community infection remains low and stable, and dormitory infection rates are under control, Singapore will move on to Phase 2, allowing more activities to resume.

Social activities in small groups will be allowed to take place.

More firms and businesses, starting with F&B dine-in and retail outlets, gyms and fitness studios, and tuition and enrichment centres, will gradually be allowed to re-open if they can provide a safe environment for patrons.

Employers should still ensure that those who can work from home continue to do so.

Depending on the situation, all students will hopefully return to school and IHLs will increase the number of students back on campus. Sports, recreation and outdoor facilities will also start to re-open, subject to safe management practices.

Phase 2 is projected to take months.

Phase 3

In this phase, social, cultural, religious and business gatherings or events would have resumed, although gathering sizes would have to be limited in order to prevent large clusters.

Seniors should be able to resume day-to-day activities while practising safe distancing measures and avoiding peak period travel, crowded places and large groups.

Services and activities that involve significant prolonged close contact (like massages) or significant crowd management risk in an enclosed space (e.g. theatres, bars, and nightclubs) would need to seek permission to re-open, subject to the implementation of effective safety measures.

Minister Wong has also stressed that Phase 3 is not a return to life before Covid-19, as precautions and limits will still be implemented.

Singapore shall remain in Phase 3 until an effective vaccine or treatment for COVID-19 is developed.

Top image via Tan Tock Seng Hospital on Facebook