GEORGE TOWN – Penang has convinced a hotel owner here to convert the premises into a low-risk quarantine centre for the B40 income group.
This move is expected to reduce the high transmissible rate among the working class, said Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.
He said the Hotel Mei in Lorong Abu Siti here will offer temporary accommodation to B40 individuals who are listed under Covid-19 Categories 1 and 2 from Friday onwards.
The hotel’s general manager John Kim said that the offer is complimentary for the next three months and it represents part of its owners’ commitment to help Penang fight the novel coronavirus effectively.
The state together with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and Crisis Relief Services and Training Bhd (CREST) have raised RM1.7 million to subsidise the arrangement at the hotel, he said in a statement today.
“We held meetings with all parties, and we are pleased it has come to fruition. All patients will be brought in through the back entrance. Such centres are important as many B40 people live in cramped conditions.”
This can lead to them passing on the virus unwittingly, he said.
Hotel Mei is the only hospitality property offering such services whereas the other properties –Rainbow Paradise, Bahang Bay, Voux, and Royale Chulan are offer paid quarantine services to travellers and high-income patients.
The hotel has offered 70 rooms to house 147 patients, who must routinely observe the mandatory 14-day quarantine here.
The patients will be selected by the state health authorities, said Chow.
Penang has a cumulative caseload of 127,637 infections, of which 10,215 are active cases. – The Vibes, September 28, 2021
