Some personal insights into the Covid-19 situation in Malaysia — Amar-Singh HSS

‘This article offers some personal insights into the Covid-19 situation in the country. One concern is that the public in some states behave as though the worsening outbreak is confined to the Klang Valley, or only to selected states. This is a dangerous assumption as the situation is worsening in the whole nation. The lack of adequate data hampers the public’s appropriate response to the deepening crisis.’

The following matters are discussed:

• ICUs bed occupancy is at critical levels nationwide
• Mortality rate is rising
• Younger persons are dying and mutations spreading
• When will the current outbreak peak?
• What are the implications of these trends?
• What is possibly going to happen?
• What can we do as the general public?’

Read here (The Malay Mail, May 23, 2021)

Wider vaccination, herd immunity vital to recovery — Moody's Analytics

‘A stronger push towards wider vaccination and herd immunity will be key to domestic recovery and should facilitate an economic rebound as emergence of new Covid-19 variants poses high risk, Moody's Analytics economist Sonia Zhu said. Malaysia's economy contracted by 0.5% year-on-year in the March quarter, following a 3.4% slump in the fourth quarter of 2020.

"Despite a gradual easing of gross domestic product (GDP) contractions, conditions will likely stay weak in the coming quarter due to the latest Movement Control Order (MCO)," she said in a statement today... "Hence, a stronger push towards wider vaccination is key," she said, adding that at present, only 3.4% of Malaysia's total population has received at least one dose of a vaccine.

‘The slow vaccination rate casts doubt on the ability to reach herd immunity target by the end of 2021, tilting the balance of risks to the downside for the subsequent quarter, opined Zhu.’

Read here (The Edge, May 14, 2021)

The AstraZeneca vaccination system must be scrapped – P Gunasegaram

‘The original proposal for Covid-19 vaccinations was a good one but concerns over the AstraZeneca vaccine have elicited a wrong response from the government, leading to a system that enabled jumping a queue that already exists.

‘The AstraZeneca vaccination system needs to be scrapped after its first roll-out and amalgamated into the existing one, especially since it was reported that Malaysia is soon to receive a million more doses of AstraZeneca under the Covax facility, which enables countries to get vaccines. It would be a major disaster if this is done through the alternative booking process because it seriously compromises the earlier queuing system.

‘Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, who is responsible for the coordination of vaccinations, erred when he allowed a parallel system of vaccination, which is unfair because it bypasses a system already in place which prioritises vaccinations according to need.’

Read here (The Vibes, May 13, 2021)

Unhide the confusion over HIDE – P Gunasegaram

‘HIDE clearly highlights the amount of confusion that the government’s handling of Covid-19 has raised. There is no coordination, consideration, nor thought given to measures taken, with each leader working in his own silo. Examples of previous gaffes include a botched and questionable roll-out of the AstraZeneca vaccine; conflicting statements over police requirements for interstate travel; the U-turn on exercise requirements during the movement control order; a number of different dates for closure of Ramadan bazaars; etc.

‘The government badly needs to get its act together over the control of Covid-19. It is not an easy task – but it is made much tougher by a lack of coordination and ministers shooting from the hip before moves have been properly considered. There is a crying need for professionals to take over and for politicians to be side-lined – a clear mandate needs to be given to a committee of professionals from various relevant ministries to run the operation to fight Covid-19 and make the needed announcements.

‘Probably the best person to lead this effort is Health Director-General Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, who has a very good grasp of the problem and who will be able – with the help of other top civil servants and experts from the private sector – to deal with this.’

Read here (The Vibes, May 10, 2021)

Avoid a Covid-19 disaster in Malaysia — Amar-Singh HSS

‘A Covid-19 disaster is looming in Malaysia as we watch the numbers rise. It is semantics to argue if we consider this a fourth wave or a resurgence of the third wave. What we know as a reality is that our control measures are no longer effective, deaths are increasing, younger persons are dying (some with no chronic illnesses) and our intensive care units (ICUs) are getting choked.

‘Our fear is not just death but Long Covid-19; i.e. 10-30 per cent of all adults that get infected, even with a mild illness, may suffer long term damage to organs and be debilitated for many months. It would be foolish to think that we cannot reach a state like India is in today. Don’t forget what happened to Italy early in the pandemic — they have much better health infrastructure compared to us and yet were overrun.’

Read here (The Malay Mail, May 8, 2021)

Suspend HIDE information announcement immediately, shopping mall operators and retailers tell MOSTI

‘The statement [by The Malaysia Shopping Malls Association, Malaysia Retailers Association and Malaysia Retail Chain Association] claimed that the HIDE assessment is grossly unfair to shopping malls and retailers which have invested so much on safety and control and adhered to Covid-19-driven SOPs as determined by the authorities. "The earnest and diligent adherence to the SOPs at shopping malls would appear to have, unfortunately, back-fired and inadvertently punished the malls. 

"We understand that the national [Covid-19] infection rate is 1.3% and from our own statistics, shopping malls’ infection rate is significantly below the national average,” the statement claimed. Citing data from the Health Ministry, the statement said the ministry’s data shows that factories, communities and construction sites constitute the top three locations where Covid-19 incidence is detected at 48.06%, 12.5% and 11.56% respectively.

‘As the ministry’s data shows that shopping areas only comprises 4.78%, the statement said clarification needs to be accurately provided as to the incidence of Covid-19 infections in shopping malls and areas. "It is obvious the HIDE information is incomplete and skewed and portrays a completely different picture than the real situation. "The information is incomplete as only those premises and operations that diligently comply with the SOPs and MySejahtera recording are data-mined. "Those sectors that do not comply and blatantly flout the SOPs are not evaluated for lack of data and thus do not appear as a hotspot, despite being so,” the statement claimed.’

Read here (The Edge, May 8, 2021)

Is the first come first served vaccine rollout scientifically and ethically right? — Dr Musa Mohd Nordin

‘This narrative may not go down very well with the many young Malaysians who have successfully secured their AstraZeneca-University Oxford (AZ) doses. It was a frantic scrambling by the tech savvy for the 268,000 doses of the AZ vaccine. All vaccine doses were snapped within a space of four hours. Now that they have jumped the queue, some of them have even begun to rationalize the legitimacy of the first come first served vaccine roll out!...

‘The risk of being admitted to hospital and of dying from COVID in a 70 year old is 1786 and 906 times respectively, when compared to the risk of suffering from a blood clot.

‘Thus my suggestion to prioritize the AZ vaccine rollout in the high infection rate states, namely Sarawak, Kelantan, KL and Selangor, with the first right of refusal to the groups at the highest risk of severe COVID disease and deaths, i.e. those above 60 years old. Only when these high-risk elders have been protected, then the AZ vaccine can be offered to others. This makes medical sense and it is the ethically right response, within the context of limited vaccine supplies and the presently known risk benefit analysis.’

Read here (The Malay Mail, May 5, 2021)

Covid-19: Medical experts call on govt to implement a more targeted MCO to prevent fourth wave of infections

‘The government has been urged to implement a more targeted movement control order (MCO) with mass targeted testing to prevent a fourth wave of Covid-19 infections. The Health and Sciences Covid-19 Advisory Group of Experts (EAG) said the government should prioritise mitigating the spread of the virus as it was no longer realistic to try and get infection rates down to zero. 

‘It said all resources must be focused on enhancing the implementation of targeted MCOs. It recommended that all MCO areas must fully employ the digitised find, test, trace, isolation, and support (FTTIS) system, which includes the proposed targeted mass testing strategy. "A highly targeted MCO will minimise economic disruption, on top of reducing the spread of Covid-19, balancing the wellbeing of both lives and livelihoods.

"State and district health authorities must be empowered to work with external experts and determine clear and transparent thresholds for when an area should be placed under MCO. The thresholds should be defined according to population density, number of cases, and geo-characteristics of the area, and communicated clearly to the public," it said in a statement on Sunday (April 25).

‘EAG comprises representatives from the Academy of Medicine of Malaysia, Malaysian Medical Association, Malaysian Public Health Physicians Association, and the Association of Private Hospitals of Malaysia, as well as two distinguished members of the medical fraternity. It is chaired by former director-general of Health and International Medical University chairman Tan Sri Datuk Dr Abu Bakar Suleiman.’

Read here (The Star, Apr 25, 2021)

Are we losing the fight against Covid-19? – P Gunasegaram

‘With neither vaccinations to provide herd immunity nor control measures to reduce the infectivity rate, it looks like the government has indeed lost control of the fight against Covid 19, and we, the people, may have to pay the price.

‘There is a terribly urgent need to increase the vaccination rate. While this is being done, controls must be reimposed. It is a time for tough decisions, and one can only hope that this backdoor government will put politicking on the back-burner, and prioritise the last big battle against Covid-19 and minimise the damage.

‘To simply wait for vaccination to take its course and stop the pandemic may result in far too many casualties.’

Read here (The Vibes, Apr 20, 2021)

10 questions for Khairy on Covid-19 vaccinations: Ong Kian Ming & Kelvin Yii (April 16). Khairy replies on April 18

‘In the lead-up to the start of phase two of the National Covid-19 Vaccination Programme, there are many questions which need to be asked and hopefully answered. We commend the job which Coordinating Minister of the Covid-19 National Immunisation Programme Khairy Jamaluddin has carried out thus far under challenging circumstances. We hope that he can respond to the following 10 questions as phase two starts on April 19.

Read here (Malaysiakini, Apr 16, 2021)

Read Khairy’s reply here (The Vibes, Apr 18, 2021)

‘Tough decision’ in September on mandatory vaccination - Khairy Jamaluddin

‘Drastic measures including mandatory Covid-19 vaccinations are on the cards once Malaysia’s vaccination campaign reaches a “critical point” in September, said the campaign’s coordinating minister Khairy Jamaluddin. He said Malaysia will begin receiving an influx of vaccine deliveries in June, particularly from Pfizer and Sinovac, and supply will outpace demand in June or July.

‘By September, it is expected that vaccine administration rates will begin to slow not because of lack of vaccine doses or staff to administer it, but the lack of people willing to receive the vaccines. “So I told the cabinet that I'm going to come back in September and advise cabinet whether or not we go for mandatory vaccinations in September. That is going to be a big call.’

Read here (Malaysiakini, April 9, 2021)

Khairy: Next phase of Malaysia’s Covid-19 vaccine plan to start April 19, eligible recipients to get two weeks’ notice for appointments

‘Phase two of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) will kick off on April 19, with appointment reminders sent out to eligible recipients two weeks ahead. Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Khairy Jamaluddin said a total of 2 million people — senior citizens, high-risk groups, the chronically ill, and people with disabilities — have so far registered for vaccination under the second phase.

“We will begin issuing appointment notices through instant messaging, phone calls and MySejahtera to those who have been chosen to be listed under this second phase on April 5,” he told a press conference here. The second phase of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme is expected to be carried out from April to August.’

Read here (Malay Mail, Mar 29, 2021)

Malaysia to allow private hospitals to procure Covid-19 vaccines, run parallel vaccination drive in second half of 2021

‘Malaysia will allow its private healthcare providers to open negotiations to procure their own Covid-19 vaccine supplies, the government said on Monday (March 29).

‘However, the country's coordinating minister for its immunisation programme, Mr Khairy Jamaluddin, tempered expectations by warning that a private sector vaccine roll-out - which would allow individuals to pay for their own Covid-19 vaccine - might take place only in the second half of 2021.

‘Mr Khairy said that he would hold discussions with private hospitals about allowing them to procure vaccines, following a request by the Association of Private Hospitals of Malaysia (APHM) to run a parallel vaccination drive along with the government's free vaccination programme to help the country achieve herd immunity against the coronavirus.’

Read here (Straits Times, Mar 29, 2021)

Covid-19 in the classroom: Over 2,000 infected in three months

‘The Health Ministry has reminded educational facilities nationwide to take precautions to prevent Covid-19 infection, after three of the eight new clusters reported today involved learning institutions. Its director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said 41 such clusters have been reported to date since the beginning of the year, infecting 2,228 people so far.

‘Most of the cases (1,058 cases; 47.5 percent) involved tertiary educational institutions, although they comprised only 15 of the 41 clusters. This was followed by 631 cases (28.3 percent) involving 13 secondary school clusters, and 419 cases (18.8 percent) involving 10 primary school and preschool clusters. Other educational institutions account for three clusters, totalling 120 cases (5.4 percent).’

Read here (Malaysiakini, Mar 25, 2021)

Covid-19: Dangerous dance with complacency – P Gunasegaram

‘Early signals of rising rates of Covid-19 infection should be taken seriously, and appropriate measures enforced to prevent a resurgence in the pandemic. Stronger moves may have to be imposed, such as quickly closing schools when there are cases and delaying giving the green light to interstate movement ahead of and beyond Hari Raya, if necessary. Complacency is perilous.

‘A close look at the figures indicates that we are at a dangerous inflection point, where a wrong premature move in favour of lifting restrictions may send the number of new infections skyrocketing again.’

Read here (The Vibes, Mar 23, 2021)

Covid-19 vaccination: Can we achieve herd immunity? ― Amar-Singh HSS

‘To achieve herd immunity against Covid-19, a substantial proportion of a population would need to be vaccinated but we are currently uncertain as to what this percentage is. In some diseases like measles 90-95 per cent of a population need to be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity; in others like polio we require about 80 per cent.

‘It is very likely that for Covid-19 we will require at least 75-85 per cent of the population to be vaccinated. This can be supplemented by those who had prior infection with Covid-19.’

Read here (Malay Mail, Mar 18, 2021)

March 18, 2020 and beyond: One year with Covid-19 and life under lockdown in Malaysia

‘A year has passed since Malaysia first went into a partial lockdown after the Covid-19 pandemic hit. This saw the public forced into complying with numerous unprecedented measures introduced by the government to contain the virus’ spread. Here is a recap of some of the ups and downs that the nation has survived.’

Read here (Malay Mail, Mar 18, 2020)

Malaysia PM Muhyiddin unveils RM20 billion economic stimulus package

‘Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced a new economic stimulus package worth RM20 billion (US$4.8 billion) on Wednesday (Mar 17), one year after Malaysia first imposed a lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19. This is the sixth package unveiled since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.’

Read here (Channel News Asia, Mar 17, 2020)

Covid-19: Only 0.11% of 300,000 vaccine recipients so far are govt officials, elected reps, says Khairy

‘Only 0.11% of the 300,000 Covid-19 vaccine recipients in Malaysia so far are government officials and elected representatives, says Khairy Jamaluddin. The coordinating minister of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme said the 0.11% constituted 302 people, while the rest are mostly healthcare workers.

“Based on the breakdown of the 292,104 people who have been vaccinated as of March 13, they comprise 23.86% nurses, 22.23% doctors and 23.4% other healthcare workers such as medical assistants, X-ray specialists and ambulance drivers. Another 21.33% are frontline workers from the armed forces, police, civil defence force, Rela (people’s volunteer corps) and Customs officers, among others. Another 5.62% are dentists while 3.45% are pharmacists.”

Read here (The Star, Mar 15, 2021)

Khairy set to be first recipient of Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine this Thursday

‘Malaysia will start using the Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine this Thursday, with the Coordinating Minister for the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme, Khairy Jamaluddin, becoming the first recipient of the Chinese-produced vaccine.

‘Announcing the matter in a press conference on the development of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme here today, Khairy said that he would receive the Sinovac vaccine at the Rembau Hospital, Negri Sembilan.’

Read here (Malay Mail, Mar 15, 2021)