Don’t relax Covid-19 rules just yet, MMA tells govt

 

The Malaysian Medical Association is asking why parents and spouses are allowed to visit their children or their other half, while other vaccinated people cannot travel for other reasons.

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) has urged Putrajaya to delay the relaxation of SOPs for fully vaccinated individuals, just hours before the easing of restrictions come into effect.

In a statement, MMA president Dr Subramaniam Muniandy questioned the scientific basis behind allowing only fully vaccinated couples or parents to travel to see their spouses and children.

“Either it’s sufficiently safe for the fully vaccinated to travel – in which case all vaccinated individuals should be allowed to travel – or it is not, in which case nobody should travel,” he said.

He added that scientific data must be the determining factor as to which states may have more relaxations, pointing out that some states under Phase 2 of the national recovery plan were seeing an uptrend in infections.

Subramaniam said the key figures to consider were those on hospital bed and ICU utilisation.

He urged the government not to “hype up” the daily number of new Covid-19 cases, and called for updates on the positivity rate and the status of bed utilisation and ICU in each state.

“These figures will be more meaningful indicators apart from the number of daily new cases. It is important that the public be kept informed of the bed capacity and ICU status in their respective states,” he said.

He also urged that the vaccination rates of high-risk individuals to be disclosed, adding that SOP relaxations must consider the wellbeing of groups such as nursing homes, medical students and undocumented workers.

The government has announced a relaxation of movement restrictions beginning tomorrow.

Couples in long-distance relationships will be allowed to travel and meet each other, as well as parents to visit children below the age of 18. This is applicable in all states.

For states in Phase 2 of the national recovery plan, inter-district travel, dining-in at eateries and individual sports activities will be allowed.

What precautions has Putrajaya taken? says Rafidah

Former federal minister Rafidah Aziz also took issue with the SOP relaxations, asking Putrajaya what precautionary measures would be put in place to prevent new Covid-19 cases or clusters.

In a Facebook post, she asked if couples or parents travelling outstation would still be required to undergo a test to ensure that they were not asymptomatic carriers and spreading Covid-19 to their loved ones.

“Has the government laid out mandatory safety SOPs such as pre- and post-travel testing for every one of those individuals? Or is the government ‘okay’ with the sprouting of new clusters that will further exhaust our healthcare personnel?

“Has the government mandated that every outlet that has been and will soon be allowed to operate must have every staff/employee tested, vaccinated and, after that, tested regularly?

“Replicate the process of mandatory testing, vaccination, and regular rapid retesting throughout all the economic sectors, and the economy can begin to be restarted effectively and safely,” she said. - FMT