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SINGAPORE: To date, some 25,000 close contacts of COVID-19 cases have been identified through TraceTogether, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said on Monday (November 2).
Of the identified close contacts, 160 eventually tested positive for the coronavirus.
“It has allowed early identification and isolation of cases, faster than would have been possible with manual tracing,” Gan said in a written parliamentary response.
I was responding to a question from Member of Parliament Yip Hon Weng about how many positive cases have been successfully tracked from the use of TraceTogether tokens, how the government tracks the utilization rate of the tokens, and if there are plans to integrate them with SafeEntry. characteristic.
READ: TraceTogether-only SafeEntry registry to be used in popular places as Singapore resumes activities on a larger scale
The TraceTogether program relies on proximity data to provide an initial list of close contacts of COVID-19 cases.
Authorities announced last month that SafeEntry, exclusive to TraceTogether, will be phased out in popular places in Singapore by the end of the year.
As of Nov. 1, 570,000 residents have collected their tokens, Gan said.
Approximately 2.7 million people have downloaded the TraceTogether app, which serves the same function as the token.
“The effectiveness of TraceTogether increases as more users join. Therefore, we are encouraging more Singaporeans to join the TraceTogether program, either by downloading the app or by collecting and using the token,” Gan said.
“We have also introduced TraceTogether-only SafeEntry for select higher risk environments, and will be expanding it to more locations such as shopping centers, food and beverage outlets and workplaces by the end of December.
He noted that the Government has also started integrating SafeEntry functions into TraceTogether tokens – the QR code on the back of the tokens can be used for SafeEntry registrations or scanned to enter a location.
“We will continue to explore deeper integration of the two systems, in order to minimize public nuisance, including while strengthening our digital tracking capabilities to open up our economy and safely resume activities,” Gan said.
THE GOVERNMENT WILL CONTINUE TO IMPROVE CONTACT FOLLOW-UP SYSTEMS
The Government will continue to invest in improving contact tracing systems, such as improving the convenience of SafeEntry registrations, Gan said, adding that authorities will work to acquire more tokens for residents.
He was responding to questions from the Workers’ Party MP He Ting Ru, who asked how much had been spent on the SafeEntry system, the TraceTogether app, and the tokens, including their production and distribution.
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As of September, S $ 2.4 million has been spent developing the TraceTogether app, Gan said.
Additionally, S $ 5.2 million has been spent on SafeEntry; and S $ 6.2 million for the development and acquisition of TraceTogether tokens.
Beyond what the government has already spent, it will continue to invest in improving SafeEntry and TraceTogether, Gan said.
On whether the Health Ministry sees more development costs associated with such contact tracing systems, Gan said: “The actual amount spent will depend on several factors, including the actual number of residents who need a token.”
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