Vaccinated migrant worker among 20 new Covid-19 cases in Singapore

SINGAPORE - A 23-year-old Indian work permit holder who had received both doses of Covid-19 vaccination was the sole locally transmitted case, the Ministry of Health (MOH) reported on Sunday.

The man, who works as a lashing specialist, was one of 20 new coronavirus cases confirmed on Sunday, taking Singapore's total to 60,653.

The other 19 cases, all imported, were placed on stay-home notice (SHN) on arrival in Singapore, said MOH.

The case of the 23-year-old, who stays in a dormitory in Brani Terminal Avenue, was detected through pooled rostered routine testing on April 7.

After his pooled test results came back positive for Covid-19 on April 8, he was immediately isolated and had an individual test on April 9.

His test result came back positive again, after which he was taken to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases.

"This case is a reminder that it is possible for vaccinated individuals to get infected," said MOH.

The vaccine is effective in preventing symptomatic disease for the vast majority of those vaccinated, said the ministry. It noted that the worker's serology test had come back positive, likely due to the antibodies produced following his vaccination.

Sunday's case was the first to occur in a workers' dorm since Feb 28.

The 19 imported cases comprise one Singaporean, five permanent residents, two dependant's pass holders, 10 work permit holders and one short-term visit pass holder.

With 13 cases discharged on Sunday, 60,320 patients have fully recovered from the disease.

A total of 58 patients remain in hospital while 230 are recuperating in community facilities. One is in intensive care.

Singapore has had 30 deaths from Covid-19 complications, while 15 who tested positive have died of other causes.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.