Singapore reports 10 more coronavirus cases

Ten more coronavirus cases were reported from Singapore on Monday, taking the total number of people infected by the deadly disease in the country to 160, the health ministry here said.

Out of the 10 new cases, three are imported- two from Indonesia and one from the UK, it said.

Ten cases out of the 67 hospitalized till date are in the intensive care unit. The rest of the patients are stable and improving, the ministry said.

"In view of the rising number of COVID-19 infections globally, and the expected rise in the number of confirmed cases in Singapore, we will need to prioritise the resources at our public hospitals," it said.

Also, short-term visitors to Singapore will have to pay for their treatment if they are infected by the coronavirus.

However, the ministry clarified that it will continue to waive off COVID-19 testing fees for all short-term visit pass holders as part of public health measures to identify and initiate contact tracing for confirmed cases who may have the disease while in Singapore.

The government will continue to pay for the COVID-19 testing fees and hospital bill in full for Singapore residents and long-term pass holders who are admitted to public hospitals for the COVID-19 treatment, it said.

Meanwhile, passengers of cruise ship Costa Fortuna, which will dock in Singapore on Tuesday, will undergo health checks when they disembark, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said.

The cruise ship will dock in Singapore as part of a scheduled call after it was turned away from other ports on its itinerary in Thailand and Malaysia, according to a report by the Channel News Asia.

The ship, which has a home port in Singapore, has declared that none of its passengers have fever or other symptoms of respiratory illness.

Singapore Airlines too has asked its cabin crew to wear face masks on flights to contain the spread of the virus.

This is a temporary "precautionary measure" to minimise the risks for both its customers and staff, it said.

The country reported 12 coronavirus cases on Sunday.

The disease has claimed 3,119 lives in China, the epicentre of the virus.

Apart from China, over 3,800 people have died of the disease and the total number of infections have crossed 110,000 people in 100 countries.