Bad news, or good news, depending on which camp you belong to – but the Ministry of Health (MOH) announced today new restrictions for dining-in and social gatherings amidst the rise in COVID-19 cases.
The new measures will last from September 27 to October 24, but MOH will review the measures two weeks after implementation to make any adjustments depending on the community situation at the time. Here's what you need to know.
Dine-in at F&B outlets
Starting September 27 (Monday), the group size limit for dining-in at regular food and beverage (F&B) outlets will be reduced to two vaccinated people.
Unvaccinated people with a valid negative pre-event test result, those who've recovered from COVID-19, and children aged 12 and below may be included in this group of two.
Thankfully, dine-in rules at hawker centres and coffee shops remain unchanged – that means that up to two persons can continue to eat out at these establishments.
Social gatherings
You can no longer hang out in groups of five, folks – that number has also been brought down to the magic two.
Thinking of inviting friends over? Limit unique household visitors to two a day, and keep these gatherings to just one per day.
Work-from-home
If you're getting in the groove of going back to work, you may welcome the fact that work-from-home is now the default for employees who are able to do so from September 27.
If you do have to go back to the office, you should wear a mask and refrain from social gatherings with colleagues. Employers should also carry on with flexible working hours and staggered start times to minimise crowds and cross-interaction in the office.
It's a bummer to take this step back, but let's do our part to keep the numbers down. Stay home for now and hit up our Time In page for the best things you can do without stepping out the door – these include the best online programmes to stream, board games, and online classes to keep you occupied. See you on the other side in a month (but hopefully, in two weeks).
In the meantime, you can tell us how you feel at our Readership Survey (and stand a chance to win some vouchers).
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