Spurred by state govt vaccination drive, Selangor aims for herd immunity by Oct

 

The Selangor government aims to have 80 percent of the adult population in the state vaccinated by October this year, some 100 days ahead of schedule.

This revised target comes as the administration launched its own vaccination initiative today, dubbed “Vaksin Selangor” or Selvax.

The initiative, which involves free and paid vaccines, is meant to complement the federal government’s National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (NIP).

Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari announced this afternoon that 2.5 million doses of Sinovac’s CoronaVac will be administered to 1.25 million people through Selvax.

“This effort is expected to increase the daily vaccination capacity and significantly shorten the time (needed to hit herd immunity) by around 100 days.

“We aim to fully vaccinate 80 percent of the adult population in Selangor by October 2021,” he said in a launch video published on his Facebook page.

With both Selvax and NIP, Amirudin said Selangor is expected to administer 135,000 doses per day in July. In August, this number is expected to increase to 165,000 doses per day.

Under NIP alone, the Selangor adult population was expected to be fully vaccinated by Dec 2021 at the earliest.

Despite having the highest number of Covid-19 cases and deaths nationwide, populous Selangor lags in terms of vaccination rates.

As of June 29, a total 914,648 (14 percent) of the Selangor population have received their first dose while 287,127 (4.4 percent) have received both doses.

In comparison, 1.03 million (36.6 percent) of Sarawak residents have received their first dose while 246,259 (8.7 percent) have received both doses.

Selvax Komuniti - free vaccines

Amiruddin explained that the initiative will comprise two streams - Selvax Komuniti and Selvax Industri.

Under Selvax Komuniti, 500,000 doses will be administered free-of-charge to 250,000 people.

The state government aims to administer 181,000 doses by the end of July.

Those who qualify for free vaccines under this stream include the elderly, B40 group and existing recipients of the state government’s Inisiatif Peduli Rakyat (IPR) schemes.

Among the IPR schemes are Skim Mesra Usia Emas, Kasih Ibu Smart Selangor and Skim Peduli Sihat.

No walk-ins are allowed.

The three state executive councillors in charge of this programme are Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud, Borhan Aman Shah and Ng Sze Han.

Selvax Industri - vaccines for sale

Meanwhile, under Selvax Industri, companies will be able to buy vaccines for their employees, both local or foreign.

Two million doses for one million recipients have been allocated for this.

Amiruddin did not disclose the price of vaccines under this stream but stressed that only companies were allowed to buy them, not individuals.

He added that private companies such as supermarket chain 99 Speedmart, auditing firm Ernst and Young, developer EcoWorld, developer Tropicana, GLC Telekom Malaysia and GLC TouchNGo have already signed up for Selvax Industri.

“Companies that take part are not allowed to impose any costs on their employees. This is stated in the contract and the consent form.

“Legal action can be taken against employers who impose charges on their employees,” he warned.

Like Selvax Komuniti, no walk-ins will be allowed for Selvax Industri.

The two state executive councillors in charge of this programme are Teng Chang Khim and Rodziah Ismail.

Registrations through Selangkah

State government GLC Selgate Corporation is in charge of the Selvax rollout.

Some 5,000 people are expected to be involved in administering jabs at 26 vaccine administration centres (PPVs) and at 1,228 private clinics across the Klang Valley.

Of the 26 centres, five are classified as “mega PPVs” while six are at community halls. Selcare clinics make up the 15 other PPVs.

A dry run was held last weekend ahead of the Selvax launch.

The state government previously allocated RM200 million to buy Sinovac vaccines from federal GLC Pharmaniaga for Selvax. Doses for the initiative are separate from the supply designated for NIP.

Selvax registrations can be made through the Selangkah Vax website and the Selangkah mobile phone application. - Mkini