Shorter quarantine for some travellers

PETALING JAYA: Travellers who have received booster shots are only required to undergo a five-day quarantine upon arrival in Malaysia effective Monday, says Khairy Jamaluddin.

He added that the travellers with booster shots would need to undergo Covid-19 polymerase-chain reaction (PCR) test two days prior to travelling, on the arrival day and on the fourth day of quarantine; or using rapid test kit (RTK) on the fifth day supervised by health officers.

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Travellers will be released from the quarantine period if the results of the PCR on the fourth or RTK on the fifth day are negative.

He added that the quarantine period for fully vaccinated travellers without booster shots would be seven days, while quarantine for travellers that are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated would be 10 days.

“The decision was made based on data, science and the experience of the other countries that have been managing international travellers,” Khairy said at a press conference yesterday.

The Health Minister also said that all travellers who entered the country would not be required to wear the pink surveillance wristbands.

However, he added that travellers from high risk countries, who were allowed to do home quarantine, would still be required to wear a digital surveillance bracelet.

Temperature checks at premises are set to be a thing of the past in the country, added Khairy.

He said that soon, individuals only need to do MySejahtera check-ins upon entering premises.

“The ministry has agreed to remove temperature checks from the Covid-19 SOP (standard operating procedures). This proposal will be brought to the weekly Quartet Ministers meeting and the National Security Council (MKN) for endorsement,” he said.

Khairy said individuals, however, are still required to show their vaccination certificates before entering shops and restaurants.

“As per the MKN SOP, you will still be required to show you are fully vaccinated when asked by premises owners, and you can be refused entry.

“And premises owners will also be ensuring that physical distancing is observed and that people wear masks when not eating.

“The ministry also recommends that people switch on the MySejahtera bluetooth tracing feature which will be very useful for contact tracing.

“It is not compulsory but highly recommended. The feature will inform you if you are a casual contact. It does not mean you have to be quarantined, you just monitor yourself for symptoms,” said Khairy.

Malaysian Indian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (Presma) president Datuk Jawahar Ali Taib Khan said that the association welcomes the latest SOP updates by the ministry.

“The removal of the temperature screening at restaurants will mean less hassle for the patrons,” he said.

He added that the restaurants under Presma would also ensure no compromise towards unvaccinated individuals as an effort to curb the spread of the virus.