REMBAU: Senior citizens and individuals with chronic illnesses have been reminded to take their second Covid-19 booster shots as a potential new Covid-19 infection wave may emerge sooner than forecast, says the Health Minister.
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Khairy Jamaluddin said this was based on the number of cases reported in recent days both here and across the Causeway.
“Over the past two to three days we have been reporting more than 2,000 cases a day against 1,000 and 2,000 previously.
“Today (Thursday), we have 2,796 cases with two new clusters reported at institutions of higher learning.
“So if we are not cautious, the cases will keep on increasing in the coming weeks,” he told reporters after officially opening the otorhinolaryngology centre and sleep lab at Hospital Rembau.
On Tuesday, Khairy said Covid-19 cases would fluctuate and a potential new infection wave might emerge in the next few months, despite the current situation being under control.
He said Malaysians ought to know the latest developments so that they can take preventive measures against contracting the virus.
“This is more of a preventive measure so that we are ready and not to scare anyone. In fact, other nations have faced a similar situation,” he said.
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Khairy said what was important was that the new wave was not as contagious and that the number of deaths and admissions into intensive care units remained low.
He said all states except Selangor, Johor, Kedah and Terengganu have reported an increase in the number of cases compared with the previous day while two new higher education clusters have also been reported.
“It is also my hope that those above 60 and those with chronic illnesses will take the second booster shot as this is the best way to keep them safe,” he said.
As of June 20, almost 108,000 individuals aged 12 years and above have received their second Covid-19 booster jabs. About 58,000 were aged above 60.
Khairy said he was also closely following the Covid-19 situation in Singapore.
“I have to do so because Malaysia and Singapore are in the same epidemiological area with no travel restrictions and hundreds of thousands crossing the Causeway daily.
“My Singapore counterpart has also told me that the republic has been seeing more BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants which were more transmissible than earlier variants,” he said, adding that these variants, however, had the same effect as other Omicron variants.-The Star