Ministry of National Dev Travellers on stay-home notice can book a suite at selected hotels at higher cost
We thank Ms Joanne Lin for her letter, "Stay-home notice scheme should be governed by the free market" (Aug 26). We are sorry to hear of Ms Lin's disappointing experience and have reached out to her to understand and address her specific needs.

The stay-home notice dedicated facilities (SDF) system serves to isolate returning travellers from high-risk countries, in order to protect our community against transmission risks from imported cases. Multiple government agencies work closely with industry partners to uphold strict health and safety protocols.

A critical feature in the system is to ensure travellers are completely "bubble-wrapped" when being sent from checkpoints to SDFs. To reduce operational complexity and ensure health and safety protocols are maintained, travellers are centrally assigned to SDFs upon arrival, based on available capacity. Since March last year, the SDF system has served more than 315,000 travellers.

In addition, as our hotels are also used as government quarantine facilities, the central management of these isolation facilities provides the Government with the flexibility to dynamically allocate capacity based on prevailing public health needs, and ensures that rooms are used efficiently.

Nonetheless, we recognise that travellers have diverse needs, and have several measures in place to meet travellers' needs as best as we can.

The SDF Self-booked Suite Scheme was introduced in March to give travellers the option to book a suite at selected SDFs at higher cost, subject to availability. Travellers with specific needs, such as those who require special facilities or who are travelling with large families, can also request specific room arrangements before arrival.

Persons on stay-home notice can approach SDF staff for help during their stay. They can also seek help from agencies, such as the SafeTravel Helpline (6812-5555), if SDF staff are unable to help.

Any appeals will be assessed by agencies on a case-by-case basis, according to prevailing border measures and public health guidelines.

We welcome feedback and suggestions at mnd_hq@mnd.gov.sg or stb_qsm@stb.gov.sg as we continue to evolve our SDF system with health and safety as foremost priorities.

Patrick Foo
Director, Research and Strategy Management
Ministry of National Development

Geraldine Yeo
Director, SHN Operations Division
Singapore Tourism Board

Source: https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/forum/forum-travellers-on-stay-home-notice-can-book-a-suite-at-selected-hotels-at-higher

Add Comment

---