Bukit Gasing residents are the first in the country to receive subsidised Covid-19 testings after ADUN Rajiv Rishyakaran announced that his office was collaborating with a local polyclinic to partially sponsor these testings starting today (9 November).
“Looking at the number of cases increasing on a daily basis, we feel a need to take proactive measures to curb the spread of the virus. By subsidising the costs of testing, we would be able to test more people with symptoms which leads to early detection, and provide peace of mind to our residents,” said Rajiv in a press release shared with WOB.
Rajiv and his office are providing subsidies for Antigen Rapid Test kits, the same kits that MOH has deployed to government hospitals all over Malaysia. These kits are typically able to detect the virus in its early stages. “The subsidised cost of the COVID-19 test is RM60 per test. Normally, the test would cost between RM150 to RM180 per test.
According to Rajiv, his office is the first to provide this service. “The Ministry of Health limits testing only to close contacts who fulfil certain requirements. But there have been a number of sporadic infections which is not caused by close contact, where the patient is not aware of how they got infected. They don’t know where they contracted the virus or who passed it to them.”
With the ever-growing number of cases in our country, Rajiv said he wanted to increase the availability and affordability of testing so people can still get themselves checked if they show symptoms for the virus, even if they have not been in close-contact with Covid-19 patients.
“While PCR testing remains the gold standard, it is lab extensive and thus takes time and is expensive In order to expand towards mass testing and to catch infections earlier on, the right strategy would be to do Antigen Rapid Tests, which can provide results within half an hour. If done correctly by trained and certified healthcare professionals, the test can be 94% accurate as verified by the World Health Organisation (WHO),” added Rajiv.
The subsidy is available to all Bukit Gasing residents. All you have to do to register is send a photo of your Identification Card (IC) to the WhatsApp number, 016-306 4104. Once done, you have to register for an appointment, and details of your appointment will be shared with you.
Take note, Bukit Gasing residents! Share this with someone who lives in the area.
Also read: M’sia Ministry of Health Has Listed These 57 Hospitals That Will Be Offering Covid-19 Testing
