Professor Teo Yik Ying, dean of the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health at the National University of Singapore, said on Thursday (Dec 24): This is the only way we can continue to ensure that the community as a whole is protected.
This means that instead of aiming to get 80 per cent of the population here to be vaccinated against Covid-19, we may be now looking at 90 per cent or even higher , said Prof Teo, who was speaking in a video interview with The Straits Times on its daily online talk show The Big Story.
The new B117 strain of Covid-19 circulating in Britain has been reported to be more contagious, but has not shown signs of being more lethal or severe.
Current research indicates that new strains will not affect the effectiveness of vaccines.- ST
SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): With the discovery of new, more contagious strains of the Covid-19 virus in Britain and South Africa, it may now be important for more Singaporeans to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, said a health expert here.
Professor Teo Yik Ying, dean of the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health at the National University of Singapore, said on Thursday (Dec 24): This is the only way we can continue to ensure that the community as a whole is protected.
This means that instead of aiming to get 80 per cent of the population here to be vaccinated against Covid-19, we may be now looking at 90 per cent or even higher , said Prof Teo, who was speaking in a video interview with The Straits Times on its daily online talk show The Big Story.
Herd immunity in Singapore can kick in when at least 80 per cent of the population have been vaccinated against Covid-19.
This was the prediction made by the Health Ministry s chief health scientist, Professor Tan Chorh Chuan, on Dec. 16, as reported by
The Straits Times.
80% figure
According to ST, Tan said it would be prudent for 80 per cent of the Singapore population to be vaccinated.
The math involves a conservative estimate of the vaccine s efficacy and the distribution of its effects on the population as a whole. The estimates for herd immunity vary generally around 60 to 70 per cent of the population, but a vaccine coverage of at least 80 per cent would be prudent, Tan told ST.
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A recent survey commissioned by The Straits Times of 1,000 people aged 16 and above here found that about eight in 10 would say yes to getting a Covid-19 vaccination, with more than half of this group willing to get it the moment it is available.
About 18 per cent of respondents, however, would not want to receive a Covid-19 vaccine, regardless of whether one was available today or in six to 12 months, although about half were willing to consider having one eventually.
With Covid-19 vaccinations under way in some countries and expected to start in Singapore soon, the question now is how open people are to the shots.