PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s daily Covid-19 figures registered a new record with 32,070 more cases, of which 99.4% are mild or asymptomatic infections.

       Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said of the new cases recorded on Thursday, 180 were those in Category 3, 4 and 5.

       “Of these cases, 49 or 27.22% involved those who are not vaccinated or have not completed their vaccination.

       “Another 93 cases (51.67%) are those who have completed their vaccination but yet to receive a booster dose,” he said in his daily Covid-19 statement.

       For two days straight, Malaysia’s new cases remained above the 30,000 mark.

       The national infectivity rate stood at 1.13.

       Dr Noor Hisham also said 23,332 patients were discharged, bringing the cumulative total to 3,018,172.

       There are 327 cases in the intensive care units (ICU), of which 134 are confirmed Covid-19 infections while 192 are suspected cases.

       Currently, 201 patients are on breathing assistance, with the ventilator usage rate at 36%.

       Six states saw Covid-19 ICU bed usage at over 50% namely Kelantan (86%), Johor (59%), Labuan (57%), Kuala Lumpur (54%), Sabah (52%) and Melaka (50%).

       Dr Noor Hisham also urged all employers to accept a copy of the digital certificate for the Home Surveillance Order (HSO) and Release Order after the patient isolation period ends to avoid congestion at Covid-19 Assessment Centres (CAC).

       He said based on data at the Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC), a total of 90% at the CAC were for the purpose of discharge from HSO where some patients or employers requested a written notice.

       “Reports to the CPRC found between 30% to 50% of cases at the CAC were not for assessment of cases that deteriorated while undergoing home monitoring.

       “This leads to an increase in the workload in the CAC where the focus of health workers is on aspects of assessment and treatment of cases that require special attention,” he said.