PETALING JAYA : The country’s first death due to Covid-19 of this year has been recorded.

The Health Ministry said that the death occurred during Epidemiological Week 24 (June 8-15).

“The individual had serious comorbidities, which were heart disease and diabetes, with the deceased also not taking the second booster vaccine shot,” it said in a statement on Thursday (June 19).

The ministry added that this was a drastic drop compared to the 57 deaths last year.

“The last Covid-19 related death was recorded on May 26, 2024. This shows the effective control steps taken by the ministry,” it said.

It added that six cases had been admitted to ICU wards with patients suffering from comorbidities.

“All cases were administered with close care, with all discharged from ICU wards. Four were allowed to return home with two transferred to normal wards,” it said.

To date, a total of 21,738 cases have been recorded.

“However, there has been an increase in Week 24 with 3,379 cases compared to the 2,011 cases recorded during the prior week. This is a 68 percent increase,” it said, adding that the situation remains controlled.