Senior citizens to receive China’s Sinovac vaccine

Senior citizens aged 60 and above will be given China’s Sinovac vaccine, minister Khairy Jamaluddin said today.

Khairy, the minister in charge of the national vaccination programme, said the Sinovac vaccine is considered both safe and effective.

At a press conference, he said the decision was made by the Special Committee on Ensuring Access to Covid-19 Vaccine Supply based on recent data on the efficacy rate of the jab against severe cases.

This stands at 83.7% for moderate cases and 100% for severe cases.

“Based on recent data, the Sinovac vaccine is accepted as safe, effective and stable to be given to the elderly aged 60 and above,” he said.

He added that the 100% efficacy rate of Sinovac against severe cases is important to ensure that senior citizens are protected from the virus.

“It is actually effective in preventing severe cases from happening,” he said. “This is precisely what we want to prevent from happening for our senior citizens.”

Senior citizens will begin receiving their vaccination shots on April 19 along with others from high-risk groups.