KUALA LUMPUR: Members of the public who wish to receive the AstraZeneca (AZ) Covid-19 vaccine can start booking their slots beginning tomorrow at noon.
Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said on Twitter that the people have an option to take this vaccine and they could do so by registering through a website for an appointment.
"As previously announced, @JKJAVMY (Vaccine Supply Access Guarantee Special Committee ) is offering an opt-in choice for people who want to take the AstraZeneca vaccine.
"Bookings will be open tomorrow, May 2 at 1200hrs at http://vaksincovid.gov.my. You already need to be registered and will simply just need to pick a PPV (vaccine delivery centre) and a date," he said, while explaining that slots for the vaccination was being offered to those who have registered under MySejahtera.
Khairy, who is the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme's coordinating minister said the AstraZeneca vaccine opt-in is initially opened to 268,000 people in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor on a "first click and first served" basis via the website.
He said once the date and PPV were chosen, volunteers will be notified of their vaccination appointment on MySejahtera or via text message.
The first AstraZeneca vaccine appointments will start on Wednesday, May 5, said Khairy.
"The PPVs designated for AstraZeneca are Universiti Malaya (UM), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), World Trade Centre KL and Ideal Convention Centre (IDCC) Shah Alam.
"This is the only way to opt-in for AZ. News about certain hospitals taking bookings for the AZ vaccine are untrue."
He said if the initiative was successful, JKJAVMY will roll out the AstraZeneca vaccine to other states pending further deliveries of this brand of vaccine.
When replying to a question on Twitter, Khairy said those who have registered via MySejahtera will not need to re-register themselves to obtain appointments for the AstraZeneca vaccine.
He said applicants will only need to log into the website at noon tomorrow and they will see an "apply now" and "accurate information" buttons for them to click on.
To another question on Twitter, Khairy said applicants will undergo a health assessment before receiving their vaccine dose.
He said applicants will receive their appointment based on their current home address, which they use to apply for the vaccine.
He also explained that AstraZeneca vaccinations are covered under the Covid-19 Vaccine Injury Fund.
"While AstraZeneca is an opt-in parallel track, it is still part of the overall National Immunisation Programme (NIP). It's also free for residents since (it is) part of NIP," he tweeted today.
Last Saturday, the country received 268,800 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines that would be used on a volunteer basis for recipients in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur.
Khairy had also said the Special Committee for Ensuring Access to Covid-19 Supply made this decision due to the continuous high number of Covid-19 cases in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur.
Following discussions with Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, the government had also agreed that the interval for the administering of the AstraZeneca vaccine dose would be 12 weeks.
This, it said was in line with the recommendation of the World Health Organisation and as practiced in the United Kingdom.