Patients Above 13 Years Old Will Get Covid-19 Test If They Have Respiratory Illness

Covid-19 Testing Extends To Patients Above 13 With Respiratory Infection Symptoms From 1 Jul

There will be more Covid-19 testing done during Phase 2 as more people go out and interact with others, Ministry Taskforce minister Gan Kim Yong said on Thursday (25 Jun).

From Wednesday (1 Jul), authorities will increase the scope of Covid-19 testing to all patients aged above 13 years old with acute respiratory infection symptoms.

Previously, only those aged 45 and above will get tested.

More tests needed before cases spike

This being Phase 2, authorities are looking to do more testing to quickly isolate suspected Covid-19 cases, Channel NewsAsia reports.

There is also a risk of increased cases during this period since people will be out and about, hence the need for increased testing.

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This way, authorities can find cases and isolate them before they spread the virus to others.

Authorities will also test close contacts of confirmed cases, even if they don’t show symptoms, to ensure that they can detect cases while they may be infectious but show no symptoms.

Authorities won’t lower DORSCON level yet

The Straits Times reported that the DORSCON level is unlikely to be lowered yet, as MOH director of medical services Prof Kenneth Mak said.

They’re looking to observe the situation and ensure that the public don’t relax just yet.

In any case, the decision is “premature”, according to Prof Mak.

After all, deescalating the DORSCON level might lead to a reversal of panic buying and see more crowds instead.

Featured image adapted from Facebook.