THE Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) urged the Government to conduct an audit through Cawangan Kawalan Amalan Perubatan Swasta (CKAPS or Private Medical Practice Division of the Health Ministry) on the mandatory COVID-19 screening of foreign workers.
“Improper testing could pose a serious risk, notably by causing health complications or the indicating of false negatives,” MMA president Prof Datuk Dr Subramaniam Muniandy told FocusM.
“Unfortunately, there are individuals who are taking advantage of the dire COVID-19 situation. A number of dishonest people who are not even from the healthcare sector are marketing COVID-19 screening services.”
Elaborating, Dr Subramaniam cautioned employers to not take any risks. Instead he advised them to go through the proper channels by only selecting a clinic listed on the Social Security Organisation’s (SOCSO) panel.
In an earlier statement, MMA highlighted cases of bogus middlemen attempting to squeeze general practitioners (GPs) for the lowest fees possible to earn a bigger cut from the employers.
“The audit will help ensure the highest standards of care and full compliance to Health Ministry (MOH) guidelines on infectious disease control are maintained throughout,” he pointed out.
Previously, MOH had stated that COVID-19 tests by the private sector can only be carried out at a private medical clinic, ambulatory care centre, or a private hospital.
Besides that, only private medical clinics could offer on-site screening in places such as factories, public halls, or in offices.
The first phase of the SOCSO mandatory COVID-19 RTK Antigen screening of foreign workers is now being conducted in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Negeri Sembilan, Labuan, Penang and Sabah.
The screenings are mostly conducted on-site at factories and construction sites.
The directory of clinics who have GPs trained to conduct the RTK Antigen swab tests are listed on the SOCSO website. – Dec 21, 2020
