GEORGE TOWN – It is all systems go, for the vaccination of teenagers aged 16 and 17 in Penang tomorrow.
They will receive their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine.
According to Penang health exco Dr Norlela Ariffin, approximately 57,300 students from this group will received their shots tomorrow.
However, according to state health department records, there are a total of 43,000 teenagers, both students and non-students, aged between 16 and 17 years old.
“I actually suggested that we complete this group in a day, because our capacity is 40,000 a day, and we have enough vaccination centres (PPVs), as well as the support of Protect Health to conduct the vaccine administration.
“But let’s see how this goes, and I hope that those who have gotten their vaccination appointments via MySejahtera will turn up.”
The six Covid-19 PPVs operating to vaccinate the teens are the Spice Convention Centre, Tapak Ekspo Seberang Jaya, Vangohh Eminent Hotel, Dewan Perda Convention Centre, Dewan Millennium Kepala Batas and Dewan Serbaguna Sungai Bakap.
“We are seeing a slight reduction of cases, and we hope that the trend will continue.
“To really see the infections go down, we cannot just look at vaccinating the adult population, it must be 80% of the total population including those under 18, non-citizens and migrants,” she said.
As of yesterday, 53.9% of Penang’s total population or 69.6% of the adult population have been fully vaccinated.
Though Norlela said that 100% of the adult population have registered for vaccination on MySejahtera, 7.6% remain unvaccinated. – The Vibes, September 24, 2021
