A total of 62 suspected cases of the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) coronavirus have been investigated in Singapore, with all testing negative for the virus.

Health Minister Gan Kim Yong, responding to questions in Parliament, said an Inter-Ministerial Committee had been formed since late 2014 to oversee the Government’s preparedness against dangerous infectious diseases such as MERS and Ebola.

MERS has killed 36 people in South Korea since the outbreak began on May 20, with hundreds currently still in quarantine to control the spread of the potentially deadly virus.