555 of 802 Covid-19 deaths in 2021 were not fully vaccinated: Ong Ye Kung

SINGAPORE – A total of 555 of the 802 Covid-19 deaths in 2021 were not fully vaccinated, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said on Monday, January 10, stressing that this This group of people are always “most prone” to becoming seriously ill when infected.

Although the unvaccinated only make up a small proportion of the population, they have contributed to 70% of deaths, he told parliament.

Mr Ong said the remaining 247 had been vaccinated with a range of locally available vaccines.

The incidence rate of deaths varied according to their vaccination status. There were 79 deaths per 100,000 for those who were not fully vaccinated, 11 deaths per 100,000 for those inoculated with Sinovac, and 7.8 per 100,000 for those who had Sinopharm.

As for those who were vaccinated with mRNA vaccines, the figure was 6.2 per 100,000 for Pfizer-BioNTech and one in 100,000 for Moderna.

“These rates are only indicative because they do not take into account other factors that may affect mortality, such as age and time of vaccination,” he added.

Responding to questions from MPs, he said about 132,000 people aged 18 and over were still not vaccinated. About 300 people are medically ineligible.

“We will continue to try to convince those who are medically eligible to be vaccinated, through their GPs, public messages and the media. But as the numbers decrease, it is also more difficult to convince them.” , noted Mr. Ong.

He added that mobile vaccination teams can also visit those confined to the house to vaccinate them.

In recent months, more than 90 percent of all eligible age groups have been vaccinated, he said. Among people aged 60 to 69, 96 percent have been fully immunized, while for those aged 70 and over, it is 95 percent.

For people aged 12 to 19, 95% of them are fully vaccinated, he noted.

Although vaccination is only just beginning among people aged 5 to 11, the response has been good and operations have gone smoothly, he added.

“We will continue to closely monitor the availability of other non-mRNA vaccines that are approved for use in children,” said Ong.