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Expert: Walk-in Covid-19 booster shot facilities should be available in all states

KUALA LUMPUR: Facilities that offer Covid-19 booster shots to the public on a walk-in basis should be made available in all states for those above 40, the comorbid and frontliners, said public health expert Dr Malina Osman.

She said the country was in a desperate dash to get everyone covered, especially those who had been vaccinated more than three months ago with Sinovac and six months ago with Pfzer-BioNTech as these are the groups whose immunity have begun to wane.

She said no person should be left behind and this was particularly so in the case of Sabah and Kelantan, where vaccination numbers are behind.

"We are racing against time. To wait for vaccination coverage to reach a certain percentage may take longer than expected and during that (waiting) period we may experience another surge in cases.

"The delay may also expose those fully vaccinated beyond the (stipulated) months of immunity threshold for Sinovac (three months) and BioNTech-Pfizer (six months)."

Dr Malina stressed that the relevant authorities should not forget the vaccinated and walk-ins should be retained in each state for those who had missed out on their vaccinations as well as those who had just turned 18 and were not in school or in any universities.

"These efforts have to be carried out at the same time in Kelantan where 59.2 per cent of its population had been vaccinated and Sabah (58.7 per cent). Everyone needs the Covid-19 vaccines so they can be protected optimally."

Dr Malina said the government must track down and vaccinate those who had to reject their vaccination appointment dates either because they had been infected by Covid-19 or had just recovered from it or due to other health reasons.

This, she stressed, must be done as these people were highly susceptible to the virus, despite developing an immunity against it when they recovered from Covid-19.

She expressed her utmost concerns over those who had to put on hold being inoculated with the Covid-19 vaccines due to medical reasons.

"Authorities are working to protect all adults as well as those who cannot be vaccinated such as children and those with contraindications.

"The boosters will then protect the immunocompromised and those whose immunity have waned off from breakthrough infections. So, it (the boosters) will be a proper protection encompassing most of our population," she said.

Sabah's main wave that exhausted public health services in the state came at the end of last year following the state polls.

The fallout from the outbreak there had crippled the whole country as restrictions and lockdowns were imposed starting from January.

Interstate travel restrictions were lifted in September after a nine-month ban.

Kelantan also had similar experience as Sabah with a surge in daily cases and dearth in hospital beds.

Sabah and Kelantan have started to offer walk-in facilities for booster shots for those above 40, frontliners and the comorbid.

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