GEORGE TOWN: Penang is expecting to receive 220,000 doses of vaccine from Selangor.

       State health committee chairman Dr Norlela Ariffin said 225,226 of the state’s adult population had not received their first dose.

       “Besides loaning us 200,000 shots of vaccine, the Selangor government will also donate another 20,000 doses to us.

       “With the vaccines, the state can achieve its target of seeing 100% of its adult population getting at least one dose by the first week of September.

       “By the end of August, more than 50% of the adult population in Penang will be fully vaccinated.

       “Our current daily vaccination rate is about 35,000 doses,” she said when contacted yesterday.

       Norlela said Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari was expected to hand over the vaccines to Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow in Penang on Tuesday morning.

       The state, she said, had received 1.1 million and 917,000 doses of vaccine in July and August respectively.

       She added that the next batch of vaccines is expected on Sept 3.

       On another matter, Norlela said 70% of Covid-19 infections were reported in workplaces, mainly factories, since the National Recovery Plan was announced in June.

       “Although our daily Covid-19 cases are high, about 98% of them have shown no symptoms.

       “For now, we have about 8,000 people on home quarantine,” she revealed.

       Norlela said she had launched a Covid-19 Emergency Response Team with the head of the Caring Society Complex Covid-19 treatment and quarantine centre (PKRC) to attend to emergency cases.

       The PKRC is equipped with oxygen facilities for categories 3 and 4 patients.

       “We have started training 24 volunteers at the Pintar Taman Guar Perahu Hall in Penanti.

       “I have proposed that a common private PKRC be set up and monitored by general practitioners. This will help to reduce the burden on our state Health Department,” she added.