Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (CU)_ Malaysia’s efforts to combat the Covid-19 menace have finally shown remarkable improvement last night since the start of the pandemic two years ago. According to Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin’s Twitter post last night, “Today, for the first time since 18th December 2020, Malaysia will be reporting 0 deaths due to Covid-19”.
The achievement was ascribed to the government’s data-driven and calibrated initiatives. He added, “Let us pray it continues paying off”. As of midnight, the Health Ministry recorded 1,690 new infections and zero clusters, indicating a continuing drop in the rate of new infections. According to the statistics on the ministry’s CovidNow website, the number of active cases in the country has decreased to 25,944, with 96 percent of those infected exhibiting symptoms so mild that they require just home quarantine.
Of the total hospitalized patients, 23 patients are admitted in intensive care units (ICU), and 15 patients require ventilation support. The ICU usage rate for Covid-19 patients is 5.2%, whereas the hospital occupancy rate for these patients is 13.9%. At present, there are only four active clusters in the country dispersed across the Klang Valley, Kedah, and Kelantan.
Since the pandemic began in 2020, Malaysia has lost as many as 35,732 lives to Covid-19. A latest statement from the Health Director-General Tan Sri Dr. Noor Hisham Abdullah reported an increase in the number of Covid-19 patients hospitalized in public hospitals. According to him, as compared to the previous week, there was a 4% rise for every 100,000 individuals in the country during Epidemiological Week 24.
According to him, the rise in hospitalizations was mostly due to patients having milder symptoms and up to 17 percent of patients fell into Categories 1 and 2. In contrast, the percentage of patients hospitalized with more severe symptoms who fell into Categories 3, 4, and 5 decreased to 8%. Thus far, the cumulative number of Covid-19 cases in Malaysia since the outbreak of the pandemic is 4,538,922. There have been 4,476,829 total recoveries, while 25,944 individuals are currently undergoing treatment.
