Malaysia's Covid-19 situation improves but overseas threat grows

• UPDATED 8.57PM | Added response from Noor Hisham about lifting the ban on foreign visitors coming to Malaysia.

CORONAVIRUS | The number of Covid-19 cases in the country may be on the downtrend, but there is now increasing threats from imported cases.

Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said 77 Malaysians returning from overseas have been tested positive for Covid-19 since the implementation of compulsory isolation at quarantine centres on April 3.

"In the last few days, the number of daily cases are showing an encouraging downward trend.

"However, the Health Ministry has detected a number of Covid-19 cases involving Malaysians returning from overseas.

"This had been anticipated, considering more than 180 countries have been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic," he told a press conference in Putrajaya today.

Of the 57 new Covid-19 cases today, 18 were from Malaysians returning from abroad.

He reiterated that the compulsory isolation at quarantine stations was the right decision.

He said to date, 12,160 Malaysian returning from abroad have been quarantined and 7,910 tests conducted.

He said the overseas cases had also contributed to an apparent spike in cases for certain areas.

However, these are not a case of patients infecting the local community but simply because that is where they are being quarantined.

"For example, there was an increase of 37 cases in Malacca, 32 in Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya, three in Sarawak, three in Johor and two in Selangor.

"They have been isolated and given treatment at hospitals," he said.

Noor Hisham said this fact would need to be considered moving forward amid talks of lifting the movement control order (MCO).

"If we lift our border control, there is a big likelihood that Malaysians will bring the disease back," he said.

Asked on whether the ministry would advise the government against lifting the ban for visitors to come into the country, Noor Hisham said they would have to discuss the matter first.

According to him, they would have to see if there is an effective way to detect if any visitor who enters the country is free of the virus or otherwise.

"We need to discuss how we can be sure... How we can detect if those who come to our country do not have the virus.

"If we have a good investigation method, then there is no problem. But if we cannot detect, then we would have to put them under quarantine for 14 days," he said.

Under the MCO, which has entered its third phase now, the government has banned all overseas travels. This was in exception of Malaysians who return from overseas.

However, the returnees would have to undergo 14-day mandatory quarantine at facilities provided by the government and tested for Covid-19.

So far, there has yet to be a screening method that can confirm that a person is totally free from the virus, as Covid-19 has an incubation period of about 14 days.

Keep up with the latest information on the outbreak in the country with Malaysiakini's free Covid-19 tracker.

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