COVID-19: Vaccination for children to begin on Feb 3

PUTRAJAYA: The vaccination of children aged between five and below 12 through the COVID-19 Immunisation Programme for Children (PICKids) will begin on Feb 3 in the Klang Valley as a start.

Deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali said the mRNA vaccine, namely Comirnaty 10mcg Concentrate for Dispersion (Pfizer-BioNTech), would be used for PICKids, with the first shipment of the vaccine from Belgium set to arrive here tomorrow (Jan 28).

"The COVID-19 vaccine for children is safe and effective. Getting inoculated with this vaccine is highly encouraged to ensure the children's health is protected," he told a PICKids media conference here today.

It is estimated that four million children aged five to below 12 are eligible to receive this vaccine, he said, adding that parents or guardians could book appointment slots through the MySejahtera application.

"Through this method, parents or guardians can choose the suitable location and time for their children's vaccination," he said, adding that a total of 484,639 children aged from five to below 12 had registered on MySejahtera so far.

To book an appointment, parents or guardians must update their MySejahtera application and register their children as dependents in the application, before they are given a link to make the booking.

For a start, he said, the vaccination in the Klang Valle would be carried out in hospitals for children with health problems, while those without any medical conditions would be allowed to be vaccinated at integrated vaccination centres.

"Subsequently, it will be expanded to schools in collaboration with the Ministry of Education," he said, adding that other venues identified for the inoculation of children included offsite vaccination centre, private clinics, health clinics and outreach programmes.

Asked if homeless children would be involved under PICKids, he stressed that no child will be left out and that the Ministry of Health would work together with related agencies such as the Social Welfare Department to identify these children.

-- BERNAMA