Quoting early clinical observations, Singapore‘s Ministry of Health said that the omicron variant of COVID-19 may be more transmissible. They further added that it also could have a higher risk of reinfection as compared to the Delta and Beta variants of the virus.

“This means that there is a higher likelihood of individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 to be reinfected with the Omicron variant,” Channel News Asia quoted the ministry as saying on Sunday in an update on the Omicron variant.

Meanwhile, Singapore recorded one more “preliminarily positive” Omicron case on Sunday. The 37-year old vaccinated permanent resident was on the same flight as two other “preliminary positive” cases that landed here from South Africa on December 1.

On Sunday, Singapore also reported 552 new COVID-19 cases and 13 deaths linked to the coronavirus.

The health ministry said it has gone over the reports from South Africa and other countries to obtain first-hand information about the virus.

“This press release updates our understanding of the Omicron variant, even while many questions remain with no clear answers,” the Channel quoted MOH.

The MOH cautioned that since the new variant is slowly spreading its wings, Singapore “must expect to detect more cases at our borders and, in time to come, also within our community”.

While studies are being done on how effective the current COVID-19 vaccines are against omicron, “there is an emerging view amongst scientists around the world that existing COVID-19 vaccines will still work on the Omicron variant, especially in protecting people against severe illness,” the MOH said.

The ministry urged those eligible to get themselves vaccinated or go for their booster jabs, adding that there is strong scientific consensus that doing so will protect against any existing and future variants of COVID-19.

Common symptoms reported include sore throat, tiredness and cough, the ministry added.

As of Sunday, Singapore has reported 2,69,211 COVID-19 cases and 759-coronavirus linked deaths since the pandemic began last year.