COVID: Sevenfold increase in brought-in-dead cases from April to June

He said most of the BID cases were in the 50 to 70 age group (76.7 per cent) with at least one comorbidity (64.5 per cent).

"Until today, the Health Ministry has recorded 5,327 deaths since the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country, with 4,856 deaths reported in 2021.

"Of the deaths registered in 2021, a total of 670 (13.8 per cent) were BID cases," he said in a statement today.

He said the three states with the highest BID cases this year were Selangor with 181, followed by Kuala Lumpur with 78 and Sabah with 85.

As such, Dr Noor Hisham urged Malaysians to be more alert in monitoring their own health especially after being confirmed positive and put under home observation.

Individuals can undergo an immediate check if they have symptoms or were close contacts to a positive case and self-quarantine at home responsibly.

In addition, they also need to inform the Health Ministry through self-notification on MySejahtera app and the nearest district health office or the COVID-19 Assessment Centre (CAC) if they tested positive and also report any warning signs and get treatment at nearby health facilities.

"Warning signs are symptoms that indicate that the condition of the COVID-19 patient is getting worse.

"Family members or housemates are advised to be aware of the condition and health of the COVID-19 patient by using communication technology to monitor the patient's health throughout the quarantine period at home," he said.

At the ministry level, he said several measures have been taken with the assistance of various agencies to overcome the situation, including strengthening the CAC's function, increasing COVID-19 screening lab capacity and digitalising the management of the pandemic.