PETALING JAYA: The timing of the government’s announcement to ease restrictions for fully vaccinated individuals cames a bit too soon, according to Gopeng MP Dr Lee Boon Chye, who is a former deputy health minister.
He said it would only be fair for restrictions to be eased once everyone registered for vaccination had received their first dose.
A substantial number of people had still not been vaccinated and the relaxed restrictions announced today would expose them to the Covid-19 virus more easily, he said.
“Based on the current rate of vaccinations, all those who have registered will be vaccinated with their first dose in the next two to three weeks. The government should have waited until then to make their announcement,” he told FMT.
Lee said he feared that Covid-19 cases will continue to surge even higher and bring more risk to people who were still unvaccinated.
Earlier today, the government announced that movement restrictions would be eased from Aug 10. Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, in a national address, said the relaxation “certainly comes with a risk of an increase in daily cases” but the government was not underestimating the benefits of full vaccination and also the beneficial effect on the people’s mental and physical health.
Universiti Malaya epidemiology specialist Dr Sanjay Rampal said there was never a safe time for the government to ease restrictions.
Sanjay said it has been a very challenging time for the management of the pandemic in Malaysia; despite prolonged restrictions, the country has sustained increased Covid-19 transmission.
“The current lockdown has resulted in high psychological, social, and economic costs. To prevent pandemic fatigue, SOPs need to be relaxed when possible and intensified when truly needed,” he told FMT.
Sanjay said there was good evidence for the relaxation of the current restrictions for the vaccinated as the severity of the virus appeared to be milder among those who had completed their 14 days post-vaccination.
“Incentivization of vaccination can only help in the long run. Over the past 17 months, the people have rarely been rewarded for following the SOPs. It is time to be more compassionate for the people’s welfare,” he said.
However, Sanjay said although some SOPs have been relaxed, infection prevention control measures such as wearing a face mask in close congested areas, physical distance and good hygiene were still important as community transmission was still high. - FMT
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