KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Health Coalition (MHC) has called on the government to include medical, health and public health experts in all decision-making relating to the Covid-19 crisis.
The coalition in a statement on Wednesday said it was regrettable that some decisions for Phase 3 of the Movement Control Order (MCO) were made without the necessary input from the groups.
On this note, MHC, an apolitical coalition of Malaysian health professional societies, health professionals and citizens dedicated to improving the health of Malaysians, strengthening the Malaysian health system, and supporting health in all policies, had urged the government to consider several of its proposals.
First, it said, a strict coordination with the Health Ministry and health experts, where the decision on a phased restart of the economy and society taken by other ministries or agencies must be made with the health ministry and relevant medical experts, and not through unilateral decisions.
The coalition also wanted the government to include the medical and public health experts when it drafted the MCO exit strategy.
“We recommend establishing guidelines based on a colour-coded zoning system, where residents and businesses in ‘green’ zones have looser restrictions than ‘yellow’ and ‘red’ zones.
“For any public disinfection procedure, the large-scale disinfection and sanitisation efforts must follow evidence-based procedures. Disinfection in public places using unproven methods including disinfection tunnels, can create different health risks,” it added.
On mass gatherings for cultural and religious celebrations, MHC said the government should work with religious authorities, the health ministry and local authorities in coming up with ways to avoid mass gatherings that could lead to a wider spread of the Covid-19.
The coalition added while all the decisions were intended to be in the people’s best interest, stronger and timely collaboration between the health ministry, the National Security Council, and other ministries were necessary to churn out stronger, coherent and more evidence-based approaches in managing the Covid-19 crisis.
In the statement signed by 44 member societies and 16 individuals, the coalition also supported the government’s decision to ensure consistency in the execution of the MCO, such as keeping barber shops and beauty salons closed and cancelling all Ramadan bazaars this year.
“We acknowledge that these measures may be disappointing to many Malaysians or hurt small businesses. We believe this is the right decision in helping to contain the spread of Covid-19 in the country.”