AFP file photo showing vials of the Pfizer vaccine.
KUALA LUMPUR (July 15): The Health Ministry explained today that the Kelantan State Health Department has stopped supplying Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine shots there since there is ample supply of Pfizer shots.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba in a press conference said the decision to stop administering Sinovac was mainly down to vaccine supply, and that other states will follow suit and rely mainly on Pfizer.
“For Pfizer, we have ordered a total of around 45 million doses while for Sinovac we ordered only around 16 million doses.
“So it started in Kelantan and soon other states will follow,” he said.
Adding in was Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, who said the move to stop using Sinovac was due to Pfizer making up the majority of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme’s portfolio.
“Basically it is because we have sufficient supply of the Pfizer vaccines, of more than 44 million doses, so now the main vaccine that will be used is the Pfizer vaccine,” he said.
This as the circular, issued by Kelantan state health director Datuk Dr Zaini Hussin, stated how the supply of the Sinovac vaccines to Kelantan would stop come the end of the month.
The circular mentioned that those awaiting their second doses of Sinovac vaccines will still be given their second shot and how the state would stop administering the first doses of the Chinese vaccine beginning July 18.
Bernama reported Dr Zaini saying today that should Putrajaya supply the state with Sinovac or any other types of Covid-19 vaccines in the future, they would still be used. — Malay Mail