“A circular has been issued by the health director-general (Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah) whereby healthcare workers who are close contacts, but who don’t display any symptoms, do not need to isolate,” health minister Khairy Jamaluddin said at a press conference today.
“They will need to undergo tests on certain days.”
Noting the number of close contacts and the impact their isolation had on work processes and the economy, Khairy said the same protocol may soon be applied for the general public.
However, he would be making an announcement on the matter next week.
Currently, close contacts of Covid-19 patients have to self-quarantine for five days if they have received their booster dose.
Those who have been fully vaccinated but have yet to receive their booster dose will have to self-quarantine for seven days while those who are not fully vaccinated face 10 days of quarantine.
160% increase in Covid-19 cases involving children
Meanwhile, Khairy said there has been a 160% increase in Covid-19 cases involving children since the start of the month.
While there were 6,524 cases involving children from Jan 31 to Feb 6, the corresponding figure for Feb 7-13 was 16,959.
However, crucially, no Covid-19 related deaths were recorded for this demographic during the period.
Of the 6,524 cases from Jan 31 to Feb 6, a total of 2,282 were in the newborn to 4-year-old category while the other 4,242 were aged five to 11. The corresponding figures for Feb 7-13 was 6,163 and 10,796.
“This (increase) is linked to the opening of schools (after the Chinese New Year break). When they (children) returned to schools, their mobility and interaction increased,” he said.
“Most of those in the five to 11-year-old category are not vaccinated yet while for newborns to 4-year-olds, there are still no vaccines for them.
“We will take a closer look at the type of measures we can implement, especially to cater for the newborn to 4-year-old group.”
He said the health ministry will provide more detailed information on the hospitalised children’s clinical condition next week.
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