Singapore may start turning away foreign visitors who are not vaccinated against serious infectious diseases as its Ministry of Health (MOH) steps up efforts to protect the country from diseases such as yellow fever.
Under the proposed legislative changes, authorities will have “discretionary powers” to return unvaccinated non-citizens to their places of embarkation without offering them vaccination, isolation or surveillance, Today reported.
Currently, visitors who have not been vaccinated can enter but on condition they get the vaccine, and they may be put in isolation or under surveillance.
MOH offered assurances that unwell travellers arriving in Singapore will not be turned away, and will continue to receive medical attention as needed.
The move is aimed at preventing the import of infectious diseases such as bird flu, Ebola, and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers), which have become serious public health threats globally.
Travellers arriving from countries with risk of yellow fever are required to be to be vaccinated against the disease when entering Singapore, MOH told Today.
There have been about 100 of such unvaccinated travellers since 2016. Travellers will usually be placed on phone surveillance for monitoring of health status and symptoms.