The Malaysian Insight

PUTRAJAYA’S decision to relax the standard operating procedure (SOP) for fully vaccinated individuals is a step in the right direction to revive the economy but it could also lead to an outbreak of the Delta variant in the country, health experts said. 

They told The Malaysian Insight that with the highly infectious variant in the community, it is crucial that people do not let their guards down and continue with the wearing of masks and observe social distancing measures to curb the spread of the virus.

Earlier today, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced that dine-ins, inter-district travel, tourism activities within the state and sporting activities that do not involve group settings will also be allowed for fully vaccinated individuals in states in the second and subsequent phases of the national recovery plan.

Malaysian Public Health Physicians’ Association president Dr Zainal Ariffin Omar said although the government has eased the restrictions, people should not let their guards down. 

He said there is a possibility for cases to rise following the relaxation of restrictions. 

“It is now that individuals and the community must be more cautious because the cases are still high and the vaccination coverage is still below 40%,” he said. 

Apart from that he said the highly contagious Delta variant is now doing the rounds and the healthcare facilities are overstretched. 

Zainal also said that allowing home quarantine for overseas returnees might not be a good decision due to the risk of spreading infection. 

Therefore, he said those who are fully vaccinated must continue to comply with SOP.

Individuals who have received the Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZeneca and Sinovac vaccines are considered as being fully immunised against Covid-19, 14 days after the second dose. 

As for recipients of single-dose vaccines such as CanSino and Johnson and Johnson, they will be considered fully immunised 28 days after vaccination. 

Dr Kuljit Singh, a specialist in Prince Court Medical Centre, said the relaxation of SOP in phase two and three states is not an issue as the number of cases and deaths in those states are not as high as those in the Klang Valley. 

“In phase two areas, I don’t think it’s an issue. He (Muhyiddin) doesn’t allow interstate travel, only for spouses or visiting children. Otherwise, it is not allowed. So, you still safeguard the spread from state to state,” he said. 

Kuljit said the government could no longer afford to wait for the whole country to return to normal to resume some semblance of economic activity. 

“In order to start the economy somewhere, and also the social and mental aspects of the pandemic, it’s best to start (the economy). 

“We can’t go on closing the economy for two to three months. We have to start somewhere. Every part of the world started somewhere to have economic recovery. 

“We want to wait for the whole country to go back to normal, otherwise you’re going to kill the economy quite badly.” 

Although Kuljit agreed to the government’s decision to relax the SOP for fully inoculated individuals, he said people must still adhere to strict SOP.

“We should always have our mask on regardless, because we still cannot understand how much impact will the Delta variant give, even if you are vaccinated. 

“Will it be bad, will it be mild, we are not sure. How many of those vaccinated end up in intensive care and die (due to Delta), this we need to know. 

“We will still get infected, that’s okay, but if vaccinated people are going to end up in ICU and die, we should be worried.” 

He added that while fully vaccinated individuals can still contract the virus, the healthcare system can still cope so long as they are category 1 and 2 patients and do not worsen to categories 3, 4 or 5, whereby they will need hospitalisation. 

“Both public and private healthcare no longer have the capabilities anymore (for more patients) especially in the Klang Valley.” 

Currently only Penang, Perak, Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Sabah have transitioned to phase two under the national recovery plan. Perlis, Sarawak and Labuan have transitioned to phase three. The rest of the country is still in phase one.

Not worth the risk

Former prime minister Najib Razak took to Facebook to question the government’s decision to relax the rules given that there are more virulent variants of Covid-19 making its rounds. 

“People returning from overseas have no issues footing the quarantine cost in a government centre or hotel. 

“Letting them quarantine at home is not worth the risk. Is the government not worried about the spread of the Delta Plus and Lambda variant that is said to be immune to the vaccine? 

“We still have not overcome the Delta variant, do we also want to battle the Delta Plus and Lambda variant?” he asked.

The Pekan lawmaker added that the government has not learnt from its mistake in the Sivagangga cluster, which led to an outbreak of Covid-19 cases in states in the north. 

Meanwhile, paediatrician Dr Amar Singh HSS, who helped draft the Health Emergency Action Plan, a civil society initiative to influence policies against Covid-19, said the government decision was “premature”. 

“I am in a phase two state and I am concerned with the relaxation of rules for vaccinations. A premature move. 

“Delta can infect vaccinated (even though 10 times lower risk of serious illness) and they can transmit to others. I hope we don’t have a worse outbreak. Especially crossing borders,” he wrote on Twitter.

While Muhyiddin acknowledged that relaxing the rules may lead to more Covid-19 cases, he said the decision was necessary to improve the mental and physical health of the people and the country’s economy.

Daily Covid-19 infections have trended above 16,000 since July 31 despite numerous lockdowns. 

Today, Malaysia reported 18,688 new Covid-19 cases, with the Klang Valley contributing to the bulk of the cases. It also reported a record high of 360 deaths.

To date, 8.2 million or 25.3% of the population have been vaccinated, while 15.3 million or 47% have received their first doses.

Meanwhile, 65.6% of the adult population have received one dose, and 35.3% of adults received two doses. 

Putrajaya aims to fully vaccinate the entire adult population by October. – August 8, 2021.