2,800 AstraZeneca appointments at WTC in KL to be rescheduled

Some 2,800 appointments for the AstraZeneca vaccine at the World Trade Centre or PWTC in Kuala Lumpur on May 15 and 16 will be rescheduled as a precautionary measure to allow for greater observation of SOPs including physical distancing in light of the recent increase in Covid-19 cases.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the move was to prevent congestion at the vaccination centre.

“Nearly 19,000 appointments for vaccination have been scheduled for these two days, following the full capacity of PWTC.

“This number will be reduced to 16,200. Some 2,800 appointments will be rescheduled to other dates from May 17 to 23.

“These changes will be announced through SMS and the MySejahtera app, with notifications to be sent beginning tomorrow,” he said at a joint press conference with Health Minister Dr Adham Baba today.

The AstraZeneca vaccine is currently being administered under an opt-in programme where recipients register on a voluntary basis.

A total of 268,600 slots had been allocated for residents in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, with the programme to be expanded as more AstraZeneca doses arrive in the country from the Covax facility as well as from AstraZeneca itself.

Khairy, who is in charge of the national vaccination programme, said 19,718 doses of the AstraZeneca jab have been administered so far, while over 60,000 recipients remain on the waiting list.

He also said the Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force had increased the number of halls to be used at the PWTC AstraZeneca vaccination centre.

“From Wednesday, the Tun Hussein Onn and Tun Ismail halls will no longer be used.

“Instead, three larger halls will be opened for the purpose: the Merdeka, Tun Razak 3 and Tun Razak 4 halls.

“As part of efforts to achieve herd immunity and vaccinate all Malaysians as soon as possible, we will try to make optimal use of the capacity of every vaccination centre,” he said.