He also suggested that fully vaccinated Malaysians should be given privileges, to encourage more people to register for the jab.

Subramaniam said the rate of contracting Covid-19 after getting full protection from the disease was low. Of the 40 frontliners who contracted Covid-19 after their jabs, only nine contracted it two weeks after being fully vaccinated, when humans develop full protection against the virus.

“This is a very low rate. Furthermore, there was not one case of severe disease. So, to encourage people to get vaccinated, we should point out the protection from hospitalisation and death,” he told FMT.

So far, a total of 8.9 million people, or 36.9% of Malaysia’s population, have signed up to be vaccinated.

Subramaniam said people should continue adhering to Covid-19 prevention rules even after being vaccinated.

“Many people seem to think that wearing a mask is enough. Physical distancing is just as important,” he said.

“People also don’t realise that paying for their purchases and handling packages transmits the virus. We also often see people not covering their noses. More education on SOPs is needed and the people need to be consistent in adhering to them,” he said.

He said that movement restrictions should not be relaxed just yet.

Former deputy health minister Dr Lee Boon Chye said public health measures must continue until herd immunity is established, which may take years at the present rate of vaccination.

He recommended that the government implement enhanced movement control orders for a maximum of two weeks at localities with community transmissions.

Putrajaya, he said, should also enhance enforcement of SOPs for greater compliance in high-risk activities and businesses, on top of accelerating the rate of vaccinations.

Forty health workers have contracted Covid-19 after completing their vaccination doses, health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said on Saturday.

In a Facebook post, Noor Hisham said 31 of them were infected less than 14 days after receiving the second dose, while nine contracted the virus more than two weeks later.

Meanwhile, some 142 health workers were infected after the first dose of the vaccine, before their second shot.

“More importantly, all had less severe symptoms. It is clear that we still can be infected after the completion of vaccination but perhaps with less severity,” he said.

Government statistics show that 439,286 people have been fully vaccinated so far.

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