KUALA LUMPUR: The Health Ministry has no plans to review the five-day Covid-19 mandatory quarantine period.
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said it would only do so at the end of the year when the enforcement of Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 (Act 342) for Covid ends.
"I have yet to receive (any) complaints from employers on cases of their staff misusing the Covid mandatory quarantine (to take time off work).
"It could be an isolated case. As we transition into pandemic, we continue to work together in preventing Covid spread, based on integrity of individuals," he told reporters after attending the first Asia Dermatology and Aesthetic Medicine Summit 2022 here today.
He said Malaysia had successfully contained the Covid-19 cases and kept the number low due to public cooperation in adhering to restrictions such as self-isolation.
As the country transitions into endemic, collective effort of all was vital to break the chain of Covid transmission, he said.
"Quarantine is aimed preventing further spread of infections, carried out based on trust and integrity. I have not heard any complaints from employers," he said when asked to comment on possibility of lifting the compulsory quarantine for Covid cases, as done in some countries.
The mandatory quarantine period for Covid-19 infected individuals was previously shortened from 14 days to 10 days last year, and to seven days this year.
Meanwhile, close contacts are no longer required to self-isolate, but encouraged to undergo Covid test and quarantine for symptomatic individuals.