WhatsApp message claiming XBB COVID-19 subvariant more toxic and deadly than Delta variant untrue: MOH

SINGAPORE: Allegations circulating on WhatsApp that the Omicron XBB subvariant of COVID-19 is "five times more toxic", more deadly and harder to detect than the Delta variant are untrue, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Wednesday (April 19).

In a Facebook post, MOH said that both international and local data have shown that the Omicron XBB subvariant is milder than the Delta variant, and does not have a higher mortality rate.

COVID-19 tests, said MOH, are able to detect COVID-19 infections, including the XBB strains.

“Of all the various strains in the local community now, there is no clear dominant strain,” said MOH.

“There is also no evidence showing that any one of them causes more severe illness.”

MOH added that while Singapore is currently in the midst of a COVID-19 infection wave, to date, admissions into intensive care units (ICU) remain stable and low.

Over the past month, it said that there have been fewer than 10 COVID-19 patients in ICU at any one time.

On Apr 14, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said that although there has been an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in Singapore, it is still a “small fraction” of the 20,000 or more daily cases that were reported during the peak of the pandemic.

Members of the public are advised by MOH to refer to “credible sources of information”, and can visit the ministry’s website for the latest information on COVID-19.

This story was originally published in TODAY.