PUTRAJAYA, May 5 — Malaysia will receive up to 100,000 rapid antigen test kits by the end of the week, the Ministry of Health announced today as it ramps up capacity to conduct mass testing for high-risk groups.
To date, public health authorities have already received 50,000 of the test kits imported from South Korea, Health Director-General Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said at the ministry’s daily Covid-19 press briefing here.
“So we have received 50,000 rapid antigen test kits and we have distributed 10,000 to Sarawak, 10,000 to Sabah, 10,000 to Johor, and 15,000 to KLIA 1 and 2,” he said.
“And also, we will be receiving another 100,000 (at the) end of this week,” he said.
MOH had already said it was considering buying a million rapid antigen test kits from South Korea in an effort to screen more people for the virus.
The country’s daily Covid-19 new cases have dwindled to double digits in the last few days and the ministry suggested that it has the deadly coronavirus outbreak under control at least for now.
The stabilising number of infections has prompted Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to lift most curbs on movement and businesses under the conditional movement control order, which started yesterday.
Dr Noor Hisham said all focus will now be on screening migrant workers in several red zone localities that saw a surge in infection cases.
“We adopt and embrace this targeted approach on high risk groups... now foreign workers are our targeted group,” he said.
“Our policy now is we make sure we screen them,” the health D-G added, although he stopped short of stating if the government plans to conduct mass testing on most of the migrant workforce.
There are roughly two million registered migrant workers in Malaysia, and possibly more including those undocumented.
Dr Noor Hisham said employers are encouraged to screen their migrant workers.
