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Since the beginning of the pandemic, Malaysia has reported Covid-19 deaths solely based on the number of fatalities confirmed on a particular day, even if they may have occurred days earlier.

In the wee hours of Sept 11, however, the Health Ministry began reporting a new metric – Covid-19 deaths reported according to the actual date of death. This is in addition to the earlier practice of reporting Covid-19 deaths according to the reporting date.

According to ministry officials at a media briefing on Sunday, the seven-day average number of deaths according to the date of death of the deceased - as opposed to the date when the death is reported - gives a better indication of Malaysia’s Covid-19 situation...