Zero cases achievable with vaccine programme, says Dr Jemilah

 

If 80% of Malaysians get vaccinated, the country would succeed in achieving the targetted ‘herd immunity’, says Dr Jemilah Mahmood. (AP pic)

KUALA LUMPUR: Special Advisor to the Prime Minister on Public Health, Dr Jemilah Mahmood said it was not impossible for Malaysia to achieve zero Covid-19 daily positive case through the implementation of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme.

She said if 80% of Malaysians got vaccinated, the country would succeed in achieving the targetted “herd immunity”.

However, she said during the implementation of the vaccination programme, the people must also play a role by continuing to comply with the standard operating procedure (SOP) set to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

“I think it is not impossible to achieve zero Covid-19 (daily case), but we try to bring down the number of cases as best we can and try to protect ourselves first.

Dr Jemilah Mahmood.

“Achieving zero case does not lie with the vaccine alone. The people also need to play a very important role in maintaining public health SOP, such as using face masks and practising physical distancing until the number of cases reaches zero and maintain it for a certain period of time,” she said in the “Malaysia Petang Ini” programme broadcast live on Bernama TV today.

Commenting further, Jemilah said the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme was not mandatory and will not be forced upon Malaysians.

“We have to understand that the vaccine will save many people from the disease (Covid-19) which is quite serious.

“Therefore, protecting oneself is one way we can protect all the people and also think of our relatives who are senior citizens and are at a higher risk of contracting diseases,” she said.

On the impact of anti-vaxxers on the national immunisation programme, Jemilah said such groups existed all around the world, but it was very small compared with those who understood science and support the vaccination. - FMT