KUCHING, May 22: The Sarawak Government has independently purchased the antiviral drug Paxlovid as part of its preparation to face a resurgence of COVID-19 infections.
Deputy Premier, Datuk Amar Dr. Sim Kui Hian said the purchase was made due to the expiration of contract between the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the supplier of the antiviral drug in March.
“We (Sarawak Government) do not know how long negotiations will be before they (MOH) are obtain the drug.
“That’s why purchased the drug first to supply our hospitals and clinics,” he said during an interview after the Wesak Day celebration at the Sarawak Buddhist Association.
Recently, it has been reported of COVID-19 infections in Malaysia as well as neighboring countries including Singapore and Thailand.
Hence, the purchase was made to avoid complications that may arise due to shortage of the antiviral drug.
Dr. Sim who is also the Sarawak Minister of Public Health, Housing, and Local Government also clarified that the State Health Department (JKN) has its own system to monitor the spread of COVID-19 via collaborative effort with experts from Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS).
“Monitoring will be conducted by JKN Sarawak by observing the number of people being tested and the number of hospital admissions.
“All of this is part of the monitoring system during the endemic phase of COVID-19, which means we are living with the risk of this disease,” he said.
Experts at UNIMAS are currently monitoring the new variants, including those that has emerged in Singapore. – TVS
