Rush for fourth shot as Covid-19 cases rise

 

Staying protected: Leow Pui Ling, 28, getting her second booster shot at iHEAL Medical Centre in Kuala Lumpur. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star

 

PETALING JAYA: There has been a 51% increase in the number of people being vaccinated over the last two weeks, as new Omicron sub-variants create fears of another Covid-19 wave.

According to figures from ProtectHealth, vaccination went up from 38,822 during the week of June 27-July 3 to 50,774 during the week of July 4-July 10, a 31% increase.

ALSO READ:Better safe than sorry, say those getting second booster

From the week of July 11-July 17, there was a 51% increase to 76,433.

As infections and hospitalisations rise across the country, health experts are also calling for Malaysians, especially those over 60 as well as the medically vulnerable, to get their second booster shot.

This is because the Omicron sub-variants are highly contagious and can bypass immunity from a past infection or vaccination.

Public health expert Prof Dr Moy Foong Ming of Universiti Malaya said the Omicron sub-variant BA.5 could evade antibody responses in people with previous Covid-19 infection and those who had been fully vaccinated and boosted.

“Reinfections may be inevitable but boosters will help provide protection against severe symptoms, hospitalisation and even death.

“Even though the BA.5 does not seem to cause more severe symptoms compared to BA.1 and BA.2, the elderly and vulnerable groups will likely experience severe symptoms,” Prof Moy said.

She cautioned that if the total caseload increases tremendously, even with a low percentage of hospitalisation, the number will be a huge burden on the healthcare system.

“We don’t want to lose precious lives if it can be prevented,” she said.

For those below 60, it may not be necessary to take the second booster at this moment.

“If this group of individuals had received their third dose, they should be well protected from severe symptoms,” said Prof Moy.

“When new vaccines are able to bring a stronger immune response against all new variants, then a second booster may be offered to all.”

Prof Moy also said Malaysians should consider taking a flu shot if they were in the high-risk group, especially those aged 65 and above, and with chronic health conditions such as diabetes and weakened immune system.

Public health expert Prof Dr Sharifa Ezat Wan Puteh of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia said sub-variants BA.4 and BA.5 were known to evade immunity, hence breakthrough infections could occur.

“The risk will be reduced if you obtain another booster,” she said.

“The elderly, immunocompromised, as well as people with morbidities and frontliners should be prioritised for a second booster. But now, even those who are young and have received only two doses should get a third jab,” she said.

Prof Sharifa Ezat also reminded the public to get tested for Covid-19 and influenza if symptomatic, as these can mimic each other and it is possible to get infected with both.

“This impedes recovery. If possible, get vaccinated against both,” she said.

“The government should work on obtaining supply for flu tests and pushing the flu vaccine price down.”

Volunteers For Community Engagement and Empowerment For Covid-19 chairman Datuk Dr Zainal Ariffin Omar reminded Malaysians to continue with good personal health practices such as wearing a face mask, avoiding crowded places, self-testing and quarantining if positive with Covid-19, as well as observing a good diet. 

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DOMESTIC TOURISM SOP UNDER CMCO; ‘Follow SOP even after jab’

THE government announced that Selangor, Johor, Kuala Lumpur and Penang will join Kedah, Kelantan, Negri Sembilan, Perak and Sarawak* under the conditional movement control order from March 5-18, while Melaka, Pahang, Terengganu, Sabah, Putrajaya, Labuan and Perlis are in the recovery MCO category. With the relaxation of movement restrictions, the travel sector has reopened, including wellness centres and spas, recreational parks, art galleries and theme parks. * (until March 15).

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‘Follow SOP even after jab’

As the national immunisation programme to battle Covid-19 enters its second week, health experts say those who have been vaccinated still need to observe the standard operating procedure to protect the community in general.

As of March 11, a total of 249,909 jabs have been administered, mostly to frontliners.

The government targets herd immunity with 80% of the population vaccinated by next February.

Malaysian Medical Association president Datuk Dr Subramaniam Muniandy said those vaccinated would still need to observe the SOP such as wearing face masks, practising physical distancing and sanitising their hands to protect others who have yet to be vaccinated.

 

 Such measures were necessary because it has yet to be established how effective each of the vaccines would be against any new mutations of Covid-19.

“We will also likely require booster jabs to protect against new mutations. For now, we can assume that observing the SOP is needed until the pandemic is declared over or if a cure is available, ” he said.

Medical Practitioners Coalition Association of Malaysia president Dr Raj Kumar Maharajah concurred, saying “there are several unknowns which make wearing a face mask and social distancing important to protect the community”.

“Only a handful of vaccines can claim to give complete protection.

“This may seem counterintuitive but vaccinated people may still transmit the virus, even if they do not display the symptoms, ” he said.

However, Dr Raj said whether one still needed to follow the SOP after herd immunity was achieved was still “too early to tell”.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in its updated guidelines, states that those who have been fully vaccinated can attend indoor gatherings with other fully vaccinated people without wearing face masks.

The guidelines say that those fully vaccinated do not need to stay away from others or get tested for the virus even though they have been around someone who has the virus, unless they develop symptoms.

But the CDC adds that if a person lives in a group setting and is around persons who have the virus, they should stay away from others for 14 days and get tested, even if they do not develop symptoms.

Universiti Malaya epidemiologist Prof Datuk Dr Awang Bulgiba Awang Mahmud, who heads the Independent Covid-19 Vaccination Advisory Committee, said the SOP needed to remain in place while the vaccination programme was ongoing until infection levels became very low

“This is to buy time while herd immunity is being built.

“It takes time for individuals to build up sufficient immunity to resist the virus as many of these vaccines require two doses and it takes a few weeks for the body to respond adequately after each dose.

“It will be prudent not to rush to lift all travel restrictions too soon, ” he said.

Even if herd immunity is achieved, Prof Awang Bulgiba proposed easing the SOP gradually, instead of lifting it at one go.

“We need to establish through epidemiological studies that herd immunity is building up and that it is sustainable.

“Once herd immunity has been established, the SOP can be eased gradually and we can return to pre-pandemic norms, ” Prof Awang Bulgiba said.

He also recommended that the government set up a Voluntary Vaccination Registry to follow up on 50,000 people who have been vaccinated for two years, citing a case in Brazil where a resurgence of cases was seen.

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26.5 million Malayians to get jab

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Malaysia to start COVID-19 vaccinations by February end

We are targeting as much as 80% of the population or 26.5 million Malaysians to receive the vaccine free of charge.- Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin

The country will embark on its largest ever immunisation programme, involving some 80% of Malaysians, when free Covid-19 vaccines roll out at the end of the month, says Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

The Prime Minister also warns that stricter enforcement and harsher penalties – including jail terms – will be imposed on anyone who flouts pandemic regulations. 

PETALING JAYA: The country will embark on its largest ever immunisation effort when the national Covid-19 vaccination programme, targeting some 26.5 million Malaysians, rolls out at the end this month, says Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

“We are targeting as much as 80% of the population or 26.5 million Malaysians to receive the vaccine free of charge,” he said in a special live address yesterday.

He said the first batch of vaccines from Pfizer and BioNTech would be arriving soon, describing this as a “ray of hope” for the nation in its fight against the virus.

“The first phase of the immunisation programme will involve the vaccination of 500,000 medical and non-medical frontliners, which is expected to be completed by April,” he said.

The second phase, he added, would involve those in high-risk groups such as those 60 years and above, with heart ailments or high blood pressure, were obese or diabetic, and the disabled.

“A total of 9.4 million people (from high-risk groups) is expected to receive the vaccine under the second phase from April to August,” he added.

Muhyiddin said that the third phase would involve the rest, aged 18 and above, with vaccinations to be carried out from May this year to February next year.

“The national Covid-19 immunisation programme is the largest vaccination programme ever to be carried out in the country.

“I call on all Malaysians to mobilise available efforts and resources to ensure the success of the programme.

“We are all in this together, and only together can we win,” he said.

He stressed that the vaccination programme was crucial as it would help the country develop herd immunity, which would bring the pandemic under control.

Muhyiddin added some 600 storage and vaccination centres would be opened nationwide for the programme.

He said that authorities would rely on the Emergency Ordinance 2021 to temporarily use halls and other facilities for the vaccination rollout.

He also promised that more details on the immunisation programme such as registration, location of vaccination centres and related information, would be made known in due time.

Muhyiddin said that Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has been tasked with overseeing the programme to allow the Health Ministry to focus on healthcare services in fighting the pandemic.

On a separate matter, Muhyiddin said that private hospitals had stepped forward to contribute 1,409 beds to help treat Covid-19 patients, which would ease the pressure on government hospitals, and 1,344 of these beds would be in regular wards and 65 in intensive care units (ICUs).

He added that the Health Ministry also set RM27mil to work with 31 private hospitals to outsource the treatment of non-Covid-19 patients.

Muhyiddin also said that concerted efforts would be made among public and private medical laboratories to increase Covid-19 screening capacity.

Currently, he said 68 government and public laboratories had the capacity to carry out 76,000 Covid19 tests daily.

He added that 16 former National Servive and Kem Wawasan camps would be temporarily turned into detention and quarantine centres for illrgal immigrationys and inmates to lessen overcrowing.

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