PUTRAJAYA’S move to shorten the quarantine period for fully vaccinated Covid-19 close contacts and travellers entering the country is reasonable, said health experts.

It is also a matter of time before the quarantine period is completely phased out, as the country moves towards Covid-19 endemicity.

Virologist Dr Chee Hui Yee said the move to shorten the quarantine period to seven days is not a problem, as long as an RT-PCR test is done before the period ends.

Several studies have found that the time interval between the exposure to the virus and detection via RT-PCR test has decreased, said the Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) Medicine and Health Sciences Faculty associate professor.

She added that the incubation period used to be about six days, but has now gone down to about four days, especially with the Delta variant.

“The RT-PCR test is highly sensitive in detecting the virus.”

Putrajaya has allowed only fully vaccinated individuals to be quarantined for seven days, regardless whether they are Covid-19 close contacts or inbound travellers. Unvaccinated or partially vaccinated individuals have to be isolated for the full 10 days.

UPM epidemiologist Associate Professor Dr Malina Osman said the decision is in line with the trend worldwide.

“Globally, the trend is now moving towards new norms and less strict procedures. The burden of infection worldwide is also a decreasing trend.”

Malina noted that Singapore is one of only eight countries to allow quarantine-free travel for vaccinated people, provided that their Covid-19 test returns negative.

However, it is important to remain vigilant, she added.

Malaysian Public Health Physicians’ Association president Dr Zainal Ariffin Omar said while the move is “good”, the government must continue the strict surveillance and monitoring of new Covid-19 variants.

Prince Court Medical Centre specialist Dr Kuljit Singh, however, said the quarantine period for inbound travellers should depend on the variant in their country of origin.

“If they are coming from a country whose variant already exists in Malaysia, then I do not think the quarantine period will make a difference,” he said, adding that there is a risk of new variants entering the country via travellers.

“The government has been doing it step by step, from 14 days to 10 days, and now seven. It is a matter of time before we will not have any quarantine like what they are doing in other countries.”

Under the new rule, unvaccinated or partially vaccinated travellers must undergo isolation at a designated quarantine centre for 10 days. However, unvaccinated or partially vaccinated Covid-19 close contacts can undergo isolation at home for the same period. – October 20, 2021.