KUALA LUMPUR: The public is advised against going for Covid-19 antibody test as there is still no clinical guidelines issued on the matter, said Coordinating Minister for the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) Khairy Jamaluddin.
He said based on guidelines issued by the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the United States, as well as in other countries, the test was not recommended.
“There are still no clinical guidelines for which antibody test that produces accurate results,” he told a press conference after visiting the Persada PLUS Integration Vaccination Centre (PPV) today.
A statement on the matter will be issued by the Health Ministry soon, he said, adding that a study on the effects of taking the Covid-19 vaccine on the immune system was being conducted by the Institute for Medical Research (IMR) and the outcome of the study will be announced to the public.
Meanwhile, on the surge in vaccination rate with 98 per cent of the adult population in the Klang Valley having received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine as of Aug 1, Khairy said the focus was now on states which showed increasing trend in daily cases.
The Science, Technology and Innovation Minister also said he would have an audience with the Sultan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar tomorrow and also to brief the Johor government on plans to curb the increase in cases in the state through various vaccination strategies.
On daily vaccination rate, he said Malaysia now topped the list worldwide, but with the limited vaccine supply, it was difficult for the country to surpass the current rate of 400,000 to 500,000 doses a day.
“Not all of our vaccine supplies have arrived. When we buy, the vaccine supply will arrive from week to week, weekly delivery. So, it’s very difficult to go beyond that,” he added. – Bernama
