Malaysia Sets Record For COVID-19 Infection Cases, Hotels Quarantine OTG Patients And Mild Symptoms

JAKARTA - Malaysia reported 13,215 new cases of COVID-19 infection on Thursday 15 July local time, setting a record daily infection for the third day in a row.

This is the country's fifth record caseload in the past seven days and the first time it has recorded more than 13,000 daily COVID-19 cases.

The Klang Valley region once again accounted for more than half of the cases, with 6,120 in Selangor and 1,499 in Kuala Lumpur, followed by Negeri Sembilan which reported 1,603 cases. Next, Johor reported 599 cases and Penang reported 509 cases, as quoted by CNA.

On Tuesday, Health Director General Noor Hisham Abdullah said the increase in new cases was due to an increase in COVID-19 testing. Malaysia entered its third nationwide lockdown on June 1, shortly after breaking the 9,000 mark for new cases for the first time on May 29.

Previously, Malaysia hit record highs again on July 9 and July 10, with more than 9,100 daily cases before breaking the 11,000 mark for the first time last Tuesday.

Meanwhile, citing The Straits Times, hospitals flooded with coronavirus patients are struggling to cope with the daily increase in the number of COVID-19 patients, which surpassed the five-digit figure on Tuesday.

Alternatively, hotels that have been used since the pandemic began as quarantine centers for returning migrants abroad. It is now being used as a quarantine and treatment center for asymptomatic (OTG) and mild symptomatic COVID-19 patients.

Several hotels in the Klang Valley have been converted into quarantine centers for the patient, including Saujana Subang and Royale Chulan Kuala Lumpur.

For information, Malaysia recorded a total of 867,567 cases of COVID-19 infection, 6,503 deaths and 759,705 patients declared cured as of Thursday 15 July, as quoted by Worldometers.