GEORGE TOWN – The new year has brought a surge of Covid-19 cases among migrant workers, with 400 from a major multi-national corporation’s factory admitted to the Balik Pulau low-risk Covid-19 centre here yesterday.
Confirming this, Balik Pulau MP Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik assured that there is nothing to be worried about as the they will be kept in a confined space, so that the virus cannot “fly out” to infect others.
He said the focus now is to get all migrant workers screened. There is also concern about possible infections among undocumented migrant workers, many of whom are employed in the construction sector.
The new centre, which has a capacity of 432 beds, was opened on December 28.
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow stated in his Facebook page yesterday that the rise in recorded cases in Penang is the result of increased screening among migrant workers and their close contacts.
Employers are also more committed to implementing the Social Security Organisation’s (Socso) Prihatin Screening Program, which requires all migrant workers to undergo tests at clinics registered with Socso and the Health Ministry.
Meanwhile, Penang Medical Practitioners’ Society president Dr Parmjit Singh said that the new Covid-19 strain from the UK should be cause for caution.
He said keeping national borders shut would help to keep the strain from reaching our shores.
He however said pharmaceuticals can upgrade and improve their vaccines, just as flu vaccines are produced for a different strain every six months.
According to scientists at Imperial College London, the more contagious strain of Covid-19, first detected in southeast England, has been spreading rapidly despite the lockdown.
As of today, Penang recorded a cumulative total of 103 positive Covid-19 cases. Of these 78 have been from current active clusters, 17 from close contacts and 14 from other screenings. – The Vibes, January 3, 2021
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