Health DG: Labuan’s success shows way out for Klang Valley outbreak

With over 3.1 million individuals in the Klang Valley who have already received their first dose of Covid-19 vaccination, Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the government is aiming to inoculate the remaining five million with at least the first dose by Aug 1.

This is essential in decreasing the large numbers of Covid-19 cases in the Klang Valley, he said, pointing to what happened in Labuan over the past two months as an example to learn from.

Infections and fatalities had skyrocketed on the small island of Labuan throughout late May and June, with the record being 1,340 new cases within a week.

However, there were soon ramped up vaccination efforts on the island and currently, Labuan has reached 87 percent for first dose vaccination and 52 percent who are fully vaccinated with both doses.

Subsequently, Noor Hisham said, cases in Labuan decreased significantly within two to three weeks, and Labuan today only reported 26 cases.

"What is important is we have to increase vaccinations. We have to use this method in the Klang Valley.

"A total of 3.1 million in the Klang Valley have received their first dose and the remaining five million will have their vaccinations given as soon as possible for us to provide inoculation to all Klang Valley residents by Aug 1, at least the first dose.

"And when we increase vaccinations, Insya Allah, the cases going into hospitals will be lessened," Noor Hisham said.

He was speaking at a press conference with Health Minister Dr Adham Baba today, which was held in Putrajaya and live-streamed online.

Noor Hisham added that the Labuan outbreak was caused by the highly transmissible Delta variant, which he said can spread to close contacts within 15 seconds.

Previously, close contacts were defined as someone who spent 15 minutes or more with a Covid-19 positive individual, among other criteria.

In June, the federal government had deployed the Pfizer vaccine to Labuan amid the outbreak to measure vaccine effectiveness against the Delta variant.

Noor Hisham also said in today’s press conference that the Health Ministry’s modelling estimated that with an R-naught of 1.2, an average vaccine efficacy of 75 percent and if 150,000 people nationwide can receive their second vaccine dose daily, the number of Covid-19 cases will only drop below 1,000 a day by mid- or end of November.

If all conditions remain the same, except with an average vaccine efficacy of 80 percent, the number of cases is expected to drop below 1,000 a day by October, he said.

The average vaccine efficacy is used because Malaysia currently has five types of Covid-19 vaccines in the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme’s portfolio with varying efficacies, he explained.

The average number of second doses administered in the past seven days is 138,066 doses a day.

Meanwhile, Adham said the government has decided to allow 2,229 general practitioners (GPs) in Selangor and 1,254 GPs in Kuala Lumpur to join in administering vaccine doses to residents in their respective areas.

This is on top of the 700 GPs who are already currently assisting the ministry in administering vaccines in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur, he said.

Adham said each GP is estimated to be able to give 100 vaccine doses a day, and with over 3,000 new GPs joining the vaccination efforts, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur should be able to get 300,000 doses administered by the GPs every day.

“These figures are just for private GPs or hospitals. For the rest, we are opening the vaccination centres as usual,” he said.

Conflicting statements on when walk-in vaccinations would begin

Covid-19 (July 15): Record 13,215 cases, new highs in S'gor, NS, Kedah and Penang

Residents of locked down flats shower healthcare workers with gifts

Labuan field hospital receives first group of Covid-19 patients