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Coronavirus: Malaysia may reintroduce mask mandate at schools due to resurgence in subvariant Covid cases
- Guidelines and the standard operating procedure will be released before Malaysian schools reopen on May 2
- Since September, the use of face masks on school premises was no longer mandatory, but it was encouraged
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Malaysia’s mask mandate may make a return to schools, as the Health Ministry is planning to propose the use of face masks once again.
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A report quoted Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa as saying that the move was to avoid the resurgence of Covid-19 due to the XBB1.16 or Arcturus variant.
Dr Zaliha said she would hold a meeting with Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek on the matter soon.
We are worried that students will get infected after moving around due to the Hari Raya holidays, which could cause a Covid-19 outbreak in schools
“I will meet her [Fadhlina] this week to discuss guidelines and why we need to control the spread of Covid-19 in schools, especially with the new highly transmissible Arcturus variant,” she said.
The guidelines and the standard operating procedure will be released before school reopens on May 2.
“This is important because we are worried that students will get infected after moving around due to the Hari Raya holidays, which could cause a Covid-19 outbreak in schools,” she told Berita Harian.
Dr Zaliha told The Star the use of face masks is a recommendation and not a mandate.
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