Free Covid-19 screenings for returning students and disabled

PETALING JAYA: Covid-19 screenings at the airport will be free for students who are returning for the first time and the disabled, says Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (pic).

The Defence Minister said Covid-19 screening would also be free for civil servants returning from official duties overseas.

For the disabled, they will need to show their disability card from the Welfare Department to authorities, he said.

Ismail also noted that only students returning from overseas for the first time would be eligible for the waiver and they would need to submit evidence of their studies.

This decision, he said, was made following a special ministerial meeting yesterday.

“Because the decision was made in the morning, maybe some who fell under the three categories have paid for their screening tests, ” he said.

“They will be allowed to file claims from the Health Ministry, ” he told reporters during his regular briefing in Putrajaya yesterday.

According to new regulations published on June 26, returning Malaysians must pay between RM30 and RM150 to be tested for Covid-19 upon arrival.

Non-citizens, on the other hand, will pay higher fees depending on the type of tests conducted.

For Malaysians, the fee for an antibody rapid test kit is RM30, RM60 for an antigen rapid test kit and RM150 for a polymerase chain reaction test kit.

For foreigners, the fees are RM60 for the antibody rapid test kit, RM120 for the antigen rapid test kit and RM250 for the polymerase chain reaction.

Meanwhile, Ismail said that from June 10-28, as many as 6,927 Malaysians returned via Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

He reported that 36 individuals who returned were admitted to hospital, while the rest were ordered to undergo home quarantine.