The Singapore General Hospital (SGH) in a Facebook on Sunday said that there is no evidence that the condition of an individual who is currently warded in the hospital is caused by her first dose of COVID-19 vaccination.
SGH said that its doctors have conducted multiple tests on her and it will take a cautious approach and will continue to monitor her condition and conduct tests as needed.
This announcement is made in relation to a post made by Ms Charlene Lin on Channel NewsAsia’s Facebook post on Thursday (28 Jan) where she sounded off to the Ministry of Health (MOH) that she has been hospitalised in SGH for five days after taking the vaccine.
She notes that there has yet been no accurate diagnosis despite being visited by several doctors and that she has to wake up early in the morning every day to do blood tests.
Ms Lin also writes that she is suffering from weakness in her legs and dizziness and that she never had any allergies or reactions to medication.
Speaking to TOC on her condition, Ms Lin said that she had no prior issues with her legs as she exercise all the time.
Earlier on Thursday (28 Jan), MOH confirmed that the three individuals, who are in their 20s and 30s, had exhibited symptoms such as rash, lip swelling, throat tightness, giddiness, and breathlessness as a result of reactions to the vaccine, also known as anaphylaxis.
While all three have had a history of allergies to food or allergic rhinitis, none have had a history to anaphylaxis. If they have had a known history of anaphylaxis, they would not have qualified to receive the vaccine.
Following the allergic reactions, MOH confirmed that the three have received treatment and have now been discharged from hospital.
According to figures, the incidence rate of anaphylaxis in Singapore is approximately about 2.7 per 100,000 doses administered, in line with rates reported in other countries.
As of Wednesday (27 Jan), MOH revealed that it was aware of 432 “adverse event reports” from healthcare workers. The symptoms such as injection site pain and swelling, fever, headache, fatigue, body aches, giddiness, nausea, and allergic reactions (such as itch, rash, swelling of eyes or lip) were not unexpected and passed on their own after a few days.
According to Ms Lin, her case is not one of the three reported cases.
Vaccine Injury Financial Assistance Programme for those who develop serious side effects
In addition, the Ministry has unveiled a new scheme, the Vaccine Injury Financial Assistance Programme (the Programme), to provide financial aid to those who may, unfortunately, develop serious side effects to the COVID-19 vaccine. Although these potential side effects will be rare, the scheme will act as a safeguard, and will cover citizens, permanent residents, and long-term pass holders.
The Programme is anticipated to provide the following tiers of financial support:
- A one-time payout of up to S$10,000 will be provided to an eligible individual who is hospitalised requiring care in the High Dependency or Intensive Care Unit but subsequently recovers from medically significant serious side effects.
- A one-time payout of S$225,000 will be provided to an individual who dies or suffers permanent severe disability as a result of COVID-19 vaccination.
To qualify for the Programme, the individual must have received the vaccine in Singapore and must have experienced a potentially life-threatening or fatal side effect that required inpatient hospitalisation or had otherwise caused persistent incapacity or disability.
An independent panel has been assembled to assess and adjudicate the applications for the Programme.
Ms Lin also noted that she has not been approached by MOH for this programme, likely for the same reason why her case is not reported by MOH as it has not been determined that her conditions were caused by the administration of vaccine.
She also pointed out in her Facebook post that she has asked the hospital about the costs of the tests which no one could provide her a reply with.