GEORGE TOWN: Hotels in Penang will no longer be used as quarantine centres now that the hospitality industry is emerging from the shadow of the Covid-19 pandemic, says an exco member.

       State tourism and creative economy chairman Yeoh Soon Hin said some hotels that were previously used as low-risk Covid-19 quarantine and treatment centres are now back to business as usual.

       He said this was because home isolation is now allowed for Covid-19 patients, and the government-run low-risk centres are able to take in patients.

       “There are three such government-run centres in Penang which are the Mara Excellence Centre in Jawi, Caring Society Complex in Jalan Utama, and Hospital Penang's dental block,” he said in a statement on Friday (March 11).

       Yeoh added that the data on Thursday (March 10) showed that the occupancy rate at Mara Excellence Centre was 34% while the other two were unoccupied.

       “Figures also showed that the ward occupancy rate for patients receiving treatment at Hospital Penang is 70%, while for Hospital Kepala Batas it is 69% and Hospital Sungai Bakap, 67%. There were no patients at Hospital Bukit Mertajam and Hospital Seberang Jaya," he said.

       Yeoh also noted that the hotel industry was gaining momentum again through domestic business and tourism activities after a prolonged period of stagnation during the various movement control orders.

       “Hotels in Penang are back to doing what they do best, which is to provide exemplary hospitality services to customers,” he said.

       On industry preparedness, Yeoh said he had observed strict adherence to health protocols and safety measures during his recent visits to hotels.