Vaccine dispensing in HTAA postponed as supply runs out

KUANTAN: The postponement of appointments for vaccine shots scheduled at Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital (HTAA) here is not due to queue jumping but because the doses have been used up, said Pahang Health director Datuk Dr Bahari Che Awang Ngah.

Dr Bahari said the postponement involved those scheduled to receive their jabs from March 2 to 4 as the vaccine supply received for frontliners under Pahang's immunisation programme which began on Friday has exhausted.

"The situation has resulted in the earlier vaccine dispensing schedule to be postponed to another date when supply is replenished soon.

"However, I wish to stress that there is no issue of queue cutting...it was due to vaccine supply running out. We know the priority of the vaccination is for frontline workers," he told Bernama here today.

Dr Bahari was commenting on allegations which went viral on Facebook yesterday, claiming that the delay was due to the doses being given to privileged individuals. Pahang received 23,400 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine with 9,360 doses distributed to HTAA last Thursday.

The delay also involved vaccine jabs for those in the 4 to 5 pm session today as well as all sessions for tomorrow and the next day to a new date.

"I hope the people would not make their own assumptions over the matter and should call the Pahang Health Department to obtain the true information," he said.

-- BERNAMA