GEORGE TOWN – After suggesting futilely to Putrajaya for mass testing for Covid-19 on manufacturing sector workers in Penang, the state is urging the federal government to at least approve RT-PCR testing to be conducted with industry collaboration.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said that the Health Ministry (MoH) should review several proposals and letters proposed by the state since the beginning of this year on the mass screening approach and vaccination via joint ventures with the private sector.
In a statement today, he said that the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) had submitted the proposal on the mass testing in the industry to MoH on May 7.
He said it is appropriate to approve it because the relevant method was also proposed by the health director-general himself at a special session of the National Security Council on management of Covid-19, chaired by the prime minister on May 10.
“On January 15, 2021, I sent a letter to the MoH regarding a proposal for cooperation with FMM Penang to conduct mass screening among manufacturing sector workers,” Chow said.
He said this was followed by a letter from about 100 private clinics under the Penang Medical Practitioners’ Society (PMPS) expressing readiness to offer free Covid-19 vaccine injection services to people in the state.
“In addition, there is also a letter regarding vaccination sponsorship by the private sectors specifically for the people of Penang where the state government is still expecting a green light from the relevant ministries,” he said.
“As I emphasised from the beginning regarding the ‘3T’ approach – namely mass testing, tracing, and treatment – this formula has never shown its weakness in ensuring that the people of Penang continue to be fully protected.”
As Covid-19 infections in the state continue to rise, immediately isolating Covid-19 patients is not enough, Chow said.
The Penang Health Department needs to provide necessary training to new personnel who are “selected” so that the capacity of existing medical resources is not completely paralysed.
According to the health department, out of the 30,690 Covid-19 screenings conducted in the state in the week of April 25 to May 1, a total of 994 cases were confirmed at a positivity rate of 3.24%.
The week after, from May 2 to May 8, 26,976 people were screened with 1,682 positive cases, at a positivity rate of 6.24%.
Last month, FMM Penang chapter chairman Datuk Jimmy Ong had told The Vibes that the state authority hopes that the plan to roll out saliva testing kits for the RT-PCR tests would be approved. He said that it would help reduce the burden of medical staff and also stop the virus from spreading.
However, nothing has been rolled out or approved on this so far. – The Vibes, May 16, 2021
