By Adrian Lim
KUCHING, Aug 30: Sarawak is looking forward to adding the Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine to its armoury to vaccinate three to 17-year-old children in addition to the Pfizer vaccine once given approval by the Ministry of Health’s (MoH) National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Authority (NPRA).
Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) advisor Dato Sri Dr Sim Kui Hian said he was encouraged by a recent study on the safety and efficacy of the Sinovac vaccine for children in this age group as published in the Lancet, one of the world’s oldest and best known medical journals.
He noted China’s Ministry of Health has approved the Sinovac vaccine to be used for three to 17-years-old in China based on the study.
“We need the experts from MOH Malaysia and NPRA Malaysia to review this Phase One and Two study (take into consideration Adult Phase Three) and if suitable, approve for Sinovac vaccines to be used for 3-17-year-olds as soon as possible.
“This will greatly increase our options and armoury in our war against Covid-19 as currently, only the Pfizer vaccine is approved by NPRA for 12-17-year-olds.
“Please help the children so that we can reopen school safely and can truly vaccinate as many of our total population as possible so that we are not set back by 30 per cent of Sarawak population (below 18-years-old) not vaccinated and vulnerable to Covid-19,” he said in a Facebook post last night. — DayakDaily
