KUALA LUMPUR – Amid the Covid-19 surge, the government must have faster and more efficient tracing, testing and isolation, and better management of the vaccine roll-out, said Yeo Bee Yin.
The former minister used the United Kingdom as an example, saying: “The vaccine roll-out in the UK clearly shows that vaccination, although not the silver bullet, is a major solution to the crisis.
“At the start of the year, the first-dose vaccination rate was less than 3%, with a fully vaccinated rate of less than 1%. As of now, nearly 70% of the UK population has received at least the first dose, and about 40% has completed the two doses.
“The number of their Covid-19 cases dropped from a range of 60,000 per day in January 2021 to a range of 2,000 per day in May 2021. Within just five months of an efficient vaccine roll-out, the UK saw a drop of more than 95% in cases.”
Malaysia’s National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme was launched on February 24.
Yeo, who is also Bakri MP, said while the country cannot control the emergence of new coronavirus variants, it needs to do more to boost the vaccination rate.
It was reported that Malaysia has administered 2.07 million vaccine doses as of yesterday, according to the Covid-19 Vaccine Supply Access Guarantee Special Committee.
“Assuming a 70% usage rate, we have received about 2.95 million in vaccine supply so far. However, from the estimation graph, we should have received about six million vaccine supplies by mid-May. Is our vaccine supply now falling short of the earlier estimation?” said Yeo.
“The graph also shows that in the month of May, we’ll receive four million additional vaccine supplies. Looking at how urgent it is for a faster vaccine roll-out, two-thirds of the month of May have gone.
“We would like to seek clarification from the government if the estimation of four million doses of additional vaccine supplies this month will be achieved. And, is the government going to find ways to compensate for the shortfall from the estimation?
“For example, Pharmaniaga received 200l of the Sinovac vaccine in bulk for fill-and-finish on February 27, 2021. However, the first batch of locally filled-and-finished Sinovac vaccine (290,480 doses) was ready to be distributed only last week, more than 10 weeks after receiving the bulk supply.
“The government should review the process, and if possible, find ways to shorten the bulk-to-vial process without compromising safety.” – The Vibes, May 21, 2021
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