[UPDATED] Time to consider halting use of MySejahtera for contact tracing: MMA

KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) has called for an end to the use of the MySejahtera app for contact tracing purposes, saying that it may have now outlived its usefulness.

Its president Dr Koh Kar Chai said that the app’s scanning feature for the purpose of contact tracing is no longer as useful as it was in the earlier phases of the pandemic. He noted the high transmissions of Covid-19 in the community.

“As we are transitioning towards an endemic phase of Covid-19, it is time that we consider a halt to the scanning of MySejahtera each time we enter a premise, especially when we complete the phase of transition.

“The use of Mysejahtera allowed contact tracing to be done during the height of the pandemic, a feat that would have been impossible without the MySejahtera app.

“However, it may have outlived its usefulness as a contact tracing app,” he said in a statement today.

Koh said that with the large numbers of positive cases within and surrounding communities, contact tracing will not be adopted on a wide scale as it will not yield the expected results.

He said that the app can be put to better use as it has been adopted by a large number of the population from the young to the old across the country.

He stressed however that the contact tracing feature should still be preserved as it is not known when the next pandemic will turn up.

He explained that it can be adapted to be used as a personal health record as it is already linked to individual identities of users and is non-transferable.

Concern about data security

Koh also noted that there would be worries about the security of the data in the app’s system.

“Looking at what is being shared on social media about the ownership of this app, it is hoped that the government will continue being proactive in securing the trust of the people in the app with the hope that it can ultimately be used in the management of health records in the move towards an effective healthcare system for the country,” he said.

The continued mandatory imposition of the app on the public has been hit with controversy after the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and some MPs recently revealed anomalies regarding the ownership of the app and the security of the data inside.

Some have even called it a serious matter of national security.

In a PAC report released last week, senior civil servants summoned before the committee said the government is studying whether it should sign a contract of service with the company that developed MySejahtera to manage the software, or outright buy the company to secure full rights over the application.

The report revealed that the cabinet had decided to transfer the ownership of MySejahtera from the developer to a special purpose vehicle called MySJ Sdn Bhd, which was appointed through direct negotiation.

The Health Ministry was also recently granted approval by the Finance Ministry to negotiate a possible acquisition of the company in control of MySejahtera, the report said.

But a shareholder of MySJ has filed a lawsuit against MySJ and other parties involved in an intellectual property deal on MySejahtera for alleged breach of a share sale agreement, according to a report by health news portal CodeBlue.

In his statement, Koh also touched on the lack of a centralised management system for health records of the population.

“There is a need for an electronic medical record system that is secure and accessible by healthcare providers so that there is seamless care for the health of the people, unlike now, where we frequently see that healthcare records are not accessible across healthcare facilities or providers.

“The MySejahtera app may be utilised as an initial effort to have a health record that can be carried by the individual to allow for access by healthcare providers as and when needed,” he said. – The Vibes, March 30, 2022