As our vaccination progress slows down and case numbers continue to go up, there will likely be more and more vaccination-differentiated measures.
Currently, only fully vaccinated folks are allowed to dine in restaurants and to travel to Germany under the Vaccinated Travel Lane.
This makes sense, as it’s been shown that those who are unvaccinated against COVID-19 are more likely to fall severely ill if infected.
Now, another vaccination-differentiated measure has been introduced to protect our little ones.
Parents Accompanying Their Newly Enrolled Children in Pre-School Are Required to Be Vaccinated
Just enrolled your child in pre-school and want to see them off on their first few days? Well, you’ll now need to be fully vaccinated.
The new requirement was issued by the authorities yesterday (9 Sep).
A parent will be considered fully vaccinated if they have:
- completed a full regimen of the Pfizer-BioNTech/Comirnatry or Moderna vaccine
- completed a full regimen of a World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Emergency Use Listing (EUL) vaccine (includes Sinovac and Sinopharm)
- have recovered from COVID-19
- have tested negative on an antigen rapid test taken at a MOH-approved provider at least 24 hours before the end of the first visit with their child
Only One Parent May Be Present For Half a Day For the First 2 Days
Only one parent will be allowed to accompany their child, however, and that will be for half a day during the first two days of pre-school.
To minimise the number of visitors, the same parent should go along with their child on both days.
However, parents of children with additional needs can be with their children longer to help them adjust.
Unvaccinated Staff Will Have to Undergo Testing Twice a Week
Since pre-schools will also be subject to the “vaccinate or regular test” regimen, there will be different guidelines for vaccinated and unvaccinated staff.
From 1 Oct, unvaccinated pre-school staff will have to undergo an ART test twice a week at their own cost.
Those who are medically ineligible for a vaccine will have the cost of their tests subsidised by the government.
Back in August, the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) said that most pre-school employees are already fully vaccinated, or have received their first dose.
Guidelines For Pre-school Children & Staff Who Receive Health Risk Warnings (HRW) and Health Risk Alerts (HRA)
As you know, if you’ve been exposed to a newly identified cluster, you will now be issued either an HRW or HRA from the authorities.
Similar guidelines will now apply to pre-school staff and children.
Those who receive HRWs must get a PCR test and self-isolate until they receive a negative result.
If the negative result comes 14 days after their last exposure, they can return to school.
Pre-schools are also advised to grant a leave of absence to children and staff whose household members have received an HRW, until the household member has a negative test result.
As for children who receive HRAs, they’re still allowed to go to school if they are well, even if they’ve been in a COVID-19 hot spot.
Pre-school staff who receive HRAs are encouraged to get tested and monitor their health.
Understand the importance of vaccination here:
Read Also:
- SCDF Will Sound Public Warning System on 15 Sep; Those With SGSecure App Will Hear The Signal from Their Phones as well
- Everything About the New P1 Registration Rules From 2022
Featured Image: Mahsun YILDIZ / Shutterstock.com
