The country recorded new Covid-19 cases in the five digits for the first time in four months but Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin cautioned that the worst is yet to come due to the spread of the Omicron variant.
As such, he said those who have yet to receive their Covid-19 vaccine booster dose, particularly the elderly who are more vulnerable, should do so.
"Fully into Omicron wave. (Daily) cases will reach 15,000 soon.
"There are still one million senior citizens who have yet to receive their booster dose. Please inform your elderly loved ones to get immediately get their booster dose," Khairy (above) said in a Twitter post.
The country today recorded 10,089 new Covid-19 cases with Selangor (2,549), Johor (1,582) and Sabah (1,285) reporting fresh infections in the four digits.
The infectivity rate as of yesterday stood at 1.2. A sustained value above 1.0 leads to an exponential spread of the virus.
Meanwhile, Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisahm Abdullah said if the infectivity rate (Ro/Rt )remains at 1.2, the number of daily Covid-19 cases will reach 22,000 by the end of March.
"Hence the onus is on us to comply to all the public health and social measures plus increasing the vaccination and booster shot coverage to reduce the transmission and lower the Ro/Rt to less than 1," he said.
During the Covid-19 wave involving the Delta variant, last year's daily cases peaked at 24,599 on Aug 26, 2021.
The Omicron variant is significantly more infectious than the Delta variant but the symptoms are less serious, particularly for those who are vaccinated.
During the Delta wave, it overwhelmed the healthcare system as the number of Covid-19 patients who needed treatment surpassed what hospitals can handle.
The Health Ministry had said that its modelling suggested that the healthcare system should be able to handle the current wave with almost 80 percent of the total population already vaccinated.
However, only around 37.7 percent of the population have received their booster dose.
While the vaccine does not guarantee immunity to Covid-19, it helps in slowing down the spread thus buying time for the country's hospitals to treat patients.
This is necessary to prevent deaths among Covid-19 patients that would have survived if given proper treatment.
As of yesterday, 32,025 people have died from Covid-19 in Malaysia, the majority of which perished when the healthcare system was pushed to the brink due to the Delta variant last year. - Mkini
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