Pregnant women told to wait, no need vaccine for now

 

Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah says all migrants, including those who are undocumented, should be vaccinated, and preferably with the single-dose vaccines.

PETALING JAYA: Pregnant women have been advised by the health ministry not to receive the Covid-19 vaccine for now, until there is more evidence to show that the safety of both mother and child is guaranteed.

Dr Kalaiarasu Peariasamy, director of the health ministry’s Institute for Clinical Research, said they could still get the vaccine if they wanted to, but should discuss it with a medical practitioner first.

In an engagement session with the media, he said pregnant women were not included in any clinical trials of Covid-19 vaccines, as the priority was to protect the babies.

However, he said the rollout of the vaccine in other countries, such as the US, has already seen expectant mothers among its recipients.

“Pregnant mothers must discuss with their practitioner, but it’s best to delay the vaccine. We don’t want to aggravate the pregnancy in any situation.

“The health ministry has an expert committee looking into this, comprising gynaecologists, obstetricians and paediatricians. We will also be guided by data in other parts of the world,” he said.

Meanwhile, health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah maintained that all migrants, including those who are undocumented, have to be vaccinated as this would protect the community too.

He said the ministry could work with non-governmental organisations to administer the jabs, adding that undocumented migrants would probably be vaccinated in the fourth phase of the programme with single-dose vaccines.

“Currently there are two single-dose vaccines in clinical trials, namely CanSino and Johnson & Johnson. One jab is suitable for migrants and undocumented migrants because they only have to see us once,” he said.

He warned that Covid-19 would spread to the community if the authorities arrested undocumented migrants and placed them in prisons or detention centres without vaccinating them.

Noor Hisham also said the health ministry is aiming to vaccinate 70-80% of the population, adding that its focus was on convincing those on the fence about the vaccine.

“The World Health Organization has advised not to focus on the anti-vaxxers but those on the fence. Now, around 15% to 17% of the people are on the fence.

“If we can vaccinate 70% of the population, we’ll be more than happy. Then, we can achieve herd immunity.” - FMT