KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 — People living in red zones will be given priority for Covid-19 vaccination during the third phase of the national inoculation campaign for the general public, Khairy Jamaluddin said.
The vaccine minister said that questions asked on the MySejahtera application, which is now open for Covid-19 vaccine registration, were a filter for Phase Two of the vaccination programme that targets the elderly and those with underlying medical conditions.
“After we screen for Phase Two, either if they are in those groups (age above 60, comorbidities, or disabled), then we will open to the general population,” Khairy told a press conference at the launch of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme in Putrajaya today.
“So far, who registers first will be given priority, unless they are in a red zone at that time. If in the red zone, then we will give to those who registered from the red zone.”
Red zones are districts that record more than 40 new coronavirus cases in the past two weeks, while green zones report zero new Covid-19 infections in that period.
Khairy said that if in a short period of time, all localities in Malaysia return to green zones, then the Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force (CITF) will perform a risk assessment to study the possibilities of an outbreak in certain areas.
The minister of science, technology, and innovation urged the public to quickly register for vaccination because priority will be given to those who register first.
Meanwhile, Khairy said the Covid-19 vaccine rollout will begin nationwide in different states at different dates:
- February 25: Selangor
- February 26: Pahang, Sarawak, Terengganu
- February 27: Labuan
- February 28: Kedah, Penang
- March 1: Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Perak, Johor, Perlis
- March 2: Kelantan, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan
- March 4: Sabah
Khairy explained that this determination was made based on inventory and preparedness at the state level, however, the dates may change. The first phase of the vaccination programme targets some 500,000 frontline workers from the health and security sectors.
The chairman of CITF also said that as of yesterday, the public can already start registering for the Covid-19 vaccination programme using the MySejahtera application.
“As of 2.45pm earlier, a total of 465,081 registrations have been received,” Khairy added.
“The information that you have sent will be cross checked with the information gathered in MySejahtera and with health records in either government health centres or private.”
Those who wish to register for their dependents can do so on the MySejahtera app mid-March, while hotlines and online registration will be made available from March 5.
Those who register will be given an appointment date for their vaccination two weeks prior to their appointment.
“This period we think is enough to ensure each receiving can make necessary arrangements, including parents or high-risk group people if need be, to arrange for transport to vaccination sites,” Khairy said.
