Khairy: Individuals who are fully vaccinated with Sinovac to get Pfizer booster shot

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has announced that individuals who are fully vaccinated with Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines will be given Pfizer as their booster shot. This will be the first mix-and-match (heterologous) COVID-19 booster vaccination in Malaysia where individuals are given a different vaccine from their first two doses.

The Pfizer booster shot for Sinovac vaccine recipients will begin with senior citizens aged 60 years old and above. It will be administered at least 3 months after receiving the second dose of the Sinovac vaccine. As a comparison, eligible individuals who were fully vaccinated with Pfizer will get their Pfizer booster shot at least 6 months after receiving the second dose.

The decision to offer Pfizer for heterologous boosting was based on the recommendation by the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on Immunisation by the WHO on the 4th October 2021.

Khairy said the heterologous booster vaccination will be done off-label and it will be made a subgroup under the Real World Evaluation of COVID-19 vaccination (RECoVaM) research and clinical safety monitoring of adverse side effects following COVID-19 immunisation (SAFECOVAC) for all booster dose recipients.

The booster vaccine doses are still offered for free and eligible individuals will be informed by MySejahtera. For users without the app, they will be contacted via SMS on their registered mobile number. He added that the boosters will be given through private clinics under ProtectHealth on an appointment basis. The booster vaccination for eligible Sinovac recipients will be administered starting tomorrow, 22nd October 2021.

The booster dose is aimed at ensuring optimal levels of protection for all individuals who have received the COVID-19 vaccine.