PETALING JAYA: Malaysia recorded 1,278 new Covid-19 infections on Thursday (May 5), bringing the total number of cases since the pandemic began to 4,454,113, says the Health Ministry.

       The ministry's CovidNow portal reported that 1,275 of Thursday's new Covid-19 cases were local transmissions while there were three imported infections.

       The portal also reported that 2,599 individuals recovered from Covid-19 on Thursday, bringing the total number of recoveries to 4,391,090 since the pandemic began.

       This brings the number of active Covid-19 infections in the country to 27,454, of which 96.3%, or 26,424 individuals, are observing home quarantine or warded at low-risk quarantine and treatment centres nationwide.

       A total of 964 individuals, or 3.5%, have been warded in hospital for Covid-19 while 66 patients are, or 0.2%, being treated at intensive care units (ICUs).

       Of the patients still being treated in ICUs on Thursday, 36 individuals required ventilator support, while 30 were unventilated.

       The CovidNow portal reported that Malaysia's ICU utilisation rate stood at 55.0% nationwide, with only 8.9% of beds being used for Covid-19 patients.

       Meanwhile, the Health Ministry's GitHub data repository reported that two deaths due to Covid-19 were reported on Thursday, bringing the total number of fatalities in the country due to Covid-19 to 35,569 since the pandemic began.