KOTA KINABALU – Sabah can expect to receive supplies of Covid-19 antiviral drugs within two weeks, state health Director Datuk Rose Nani Mudin said today.
Rose Nani said Pfizer’s Paxlovid antiviral drug will likely be used on Covid-19 patients in categories 1 and 2, which cover infected persons with mild or no symptoms.
“Some patients with comorbidities could run into complications like having to go on ventilators or experience organ dysfunction. This pill will help to prevent this,” she said when met by reporters at an event.
Rose Nani said category 1 and 2 patients account for 98% of all recorded Covid-19 cases in the state.
On Monday, Health Ministry Director-General Tan Sri Noor Hisham Abdullah announced the arrival of 48,000 doses of Paxlovid, which will be used to treat patients 18 and older who do not require oxygen therapy but are at high risk of severe symptoms.
Meanwhile, Rose Nani said the Kota Kinabalu and Tawau international airports are fully prepared to manage the influx of foreign travellers, with the first batch scheduled to arrive on April 16 from Singapore.
She said all the relevant agencies and staff have been trained and underwent simulations some two weeks ago in preparation for foreign arrivals following the federal government’s decision to open up the nation’s borders to fully vaccinated and boosted travellers from April 1. – The Vibes, April 13, 2022
