PICKids: Eight-week interval to ensure lower incidences of side-effects, says Khairy

PORT DICKSON: The decision to give children aged between five and 11 their second Covid-19 dose after an eight-week interval compared to a three-week period in some countries was to ensure there were lower incidences of side effects, says the Health Ministry.

Its Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the effectiveness and protection of the vaccine was also the same if given after three or eight weeks.

He said the recommendation came from a technical committee at the ministry, which was more comfortable with an eight-week interval compared to a three-week interval.

It also decided on this after looking at the number of cases of children in the same age group who had side effects in the United States.

"I asked my team the same question during a meeting Friday (Feb 11) and was told that for now, we will maintain the eight-week interval.

"However, this can be revised from time to time if necessary," he told reporters after launching the ministry' Wellness Hub at the Bagan Pinang health clinic here.

"The technical team feels if the interval is longer, then the number of cases with side-effects would be lower even with the Omicron wave now.

"Also, the vaccination would still be as effective if the second dose is given after eight weeks.

"But for now, we will maintain the eight-week interval," he said.

The National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme for Children (PICKids) kicked off in the Klang Valley on Feb 3.

As of Feb 7, some 663,641 children aged 5 to 11 years old have registered for their shots.

The vaccine will be administered over two doses with an eight-week interval.

Each dose will be 0.2ml and contains 10 micrograms of mRNA vaccine, which is one-third of what is given to adults.

The vaccine programme is not compulsory and would prioritise children with underlying conditions such as chronic respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease, immunosuppression, diabetes, chronic kidney disease and nerve disease.

There are an estimated four million children aged between five and 11 who are eligible to get the vaccine.

On a separate matter, Khairy said the ministry has recommended that the standard operating procedures for the Johor state election be slightly relaxed.

"The SOP will be relaxed a little compared to the Sarawak and Melaka elections.

"The SOP is being finalised and the Election Commission will make an announcement soon," he said.

Khairy said he had received a lot of criticism when the ministry allowed the Sarawak and Melaka elections to proceed.

"However, there were no clusters during both elections, as the vaccination rate was already quite high," he said.

Khairy said the Covid-19 cases may see an increase due to the Omicron wave but as long as the people followed all SOP, there would be no problems.

"So, there will be some things that we will allow and some that we will not," he added.