KUALA LUMPUR, May 3 — The Covid-19 Vaccine Supply Access Committee (JKJAV) maintains the use of Sinovac’s Covid-19 vaccine for the elderly and those with comorbidities, Khairy Jamaluddin said today.
Khairy, during a Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force (CITF) press conference earlier today, said that based on real world data, the Sinovac vaccine has been proven to be effective on senior citizens.
It was recently revealed that the Pahang state government vaccinated their hospitality staff with the Sinovac vaccine ahead of high-risk groups, as the Pahang State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) claimed that the Sinovac vaccine was unsuitable for those with underlying health conditions.
“The decision by the Pahang state government to give these hospitality workers (the vaccine) was made before JKJAV revised its advisory on the use of Sinovac on senior citizens,” Khairy explained.
“They made the decision when the JKJAV advisory was still under 60. JKJAV in our meeting on April 6 had revised the use of the Sinovac vaccine from below 60 to above 60, including those with comorbidities.
“And we stand by the decision on revising the usage of Sinovac vaccine based on clinical data and based on real-world use of the Sinovac vaccine in various countries,” the science, technology, and innovation minister added.
Khairy added that more doses of the Sinovac vaccine will be distributed after the fill-and-finish process is completed by local pharmaceutical company Pharmaniaga Bhd.
