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PETALING JAYA: A US-based research institute’s model of the Covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia reportedly projected that the country could record more than 5,000 new cases in one day next March if the use of masks do not reach 95% of Malaysians.
The projections were made by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) using a model that was also used by the Trump administration, according to CodeBlue, a health news portal.
“The projection is based on a situation where there is still no Covid-19 vaccine available,” the report said. Details of the model used were not available.
The model showed a peak of more than 2,200 cases in February if 95% of Malaysians wore face masks, and along with a wide distribution of a vaccine for 90 days. The number of positive cases would drop to just under 2,000 in April.
But if 95% mask use was not achieved in conjunction with vaccination, daily infections were projected to reach just over 5,300 by April, according to the report.
The institute noted that only 78% of Malaysians have been wearing face masks since the Covid-19 outbreak began.
It also projected that the death toll from Covid-19 in Malaysia will reach just over 1,300 in April, compared to the 402 deaths recorded so far.
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