The government of Penang said no decision has been made to cancel the Penang-Indonesia medical charter flight services for the time being.

Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow today said medical flights are still permitted as long as they are all subject to the SOP and provide appropriate clearances.

“But all of this will be reviewed from time to time,” he responded when asked if it was the right time to still allow inbound flights despite the increase of COVID-19 cases in Penang.

He added that he had no information regarding the amount for medical tourism of Indonesian patients and medical tourists arriving in Penang recently.

On Aug 14, AirAsia welcomed its first international medical charter flight from Medan to Penang International Airport.

The same day, Karen Chan, Chief Executive Officer of AirAsia.com, announced the company's strong partnership with the health authorities and the health institutes in order to make patients and medical tourist from Indonesia more accessible to Malaysia through its medical flight charter services.

In light of the high number of COVID-19 cases in Indonesia and the possible risk for COVID-19 transmission in Penang, the announcement created controversy in social media.