Singapore boosts testing, holds off on further reopening over Omicron variant

A bus driver sprays disinfectant on the luggage of passengers travelling to Malaysia as the Vaccinated Travel Lane between Singapore and Malaysia opens after the land border between the two countries reopened following nearly two years of being shut down due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, at a bus station in Singapore November 29, 2021. REUTERS/Caroline Chia

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore will hold off on more reopening measures while it evaluates the Omicron COVID-19 variant and will increase testing of travelers and frontline workers to reduce the risk of local transmission, authorities said on Tuesday.

A quarantine-free entry policy for vaccinated arrivals in the Asian financial and travel hub will not be extended to more countries for now, while current social distancing measures will remain in place, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said.