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MOH: All Travellers Coming To Malaysia Must Undergo Screening For Fever

The Ministry of Health (MOH) will also conduct tests on sewage samples taken from aircraft arriving from China.

Cover image via Reuters

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All travellers entering Malaysia will have to undergo temperature screening to check for fever due to concerns on the increase in COVID-19 cases in China

In an announcement by the Ministry of Health (MOH) today, 30 December, travellers who are found to have a fever, COVID-19 symptoms, or self-declared symptoms will be taken to a quarantine facility or to the health authorities for further testing.

Those who have visited China within the last 14 days of their arrival will be required to take the Antigen Rapid Test Kit (RTK-Antigen) test.

Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said that if these samples are discovered to be positive for COVID-19, they will then be sent for genome testing.

A COVID-19 test will also be required of anyone who has recently been in close contact with someone who has recently visited China, has influenza-like symptoms, or has a severe acute respiratory infection.

Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa.

Image via CodeBlue

MOH will also conduct polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests on sewage samples from aircraft arriving from China

If results came back positive for COVID-19, the samples would go through genome sequencing.

Zaliha stated that these procedures were a part of the government's intensified COVID-19 surveillance in the country.

The new measures come following the explosion of COVID-19 cases in hospitals across China after rules to curb the virus were lifted.

The country decided to end mandatory quarantine on arrival after three years, prompting many Chinese citizens to make plans to travel abroad.

A study has found that Malaysia is a top destination for Chinese tourists once their borders fully reopen next month:

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