PETALING JAYA: Barbershops and hair salons have yet to be given the green light to operate as there is a risk of Covid-19 transmission between workers and customers, says Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.
The Health director-general said such cases had been reported in Japan and the United States.
Dr Hisham said the Health Ministry would review the Covid-19 situation within two weeks of before deciding on whether more sectors, such as barbershops, would be allowed to operate.
“We will monitor in the following two weeks if there is an increase in the number of cases or otherwise.
"Before we open more sectors, we will monitor and give our advice, ” he said during his daily press conference on Thursday (May 7).
On April 10, the government announced that it would allow hair salons and barbershops to operate during the MCO, but then rescinded the decision the next day due to criticism.
Industry players were also against the decision due to health concerns.
Dr Hisham also said Malaysia had yet to come up with an “exit strategy”, although the government was adhering to the six criteria set by the World Health Organisation to end lockdowns.
He said what was important was identifying new clusters in the country, such as the one involving security guards at a mall in Cheras where 10 new cases were detected.
Malaysia reported 39 more Covid-19 cases on Thursday, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 6,467. The death toll remains at 107.
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