31,500 people aged 18 and above have not booked for Covid-19 vaccine booster, risk losing vaccinated status: MOH

SINGAPORE — About 31,500 people aged 18 and above who received the last dose of their primary Covid-19 vaccination series more than 270 days or about nine months ago, risk losing their “fully vaccinated” status if they do not get a vaccine booster. 

The Ministry of Health (MOH) said in a statement on Tuesday (Feb 8) that people in this group who are eligible for booster shots have yet to make their appointments for their booster dose.

"As announced previously, from Feb 14, 2022, these individuals will no longer be considered as fully vaccinated, and their vaccination status will revert to 'additional dose needed'," MOH said. 

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said last month at a press conference announcing the revised rule that "vaccines cannot last in perpetuity... the protection will wane after a few months and it needs to be restored with a booster". 

MOH added that the new regulations apply to those who completed their primary vaccination regimen with:

• Two doses of messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccines such as Pfizer-BioNTech/Comirnaty or Moderna under the national vaccination programme
• Non-mRNA vaccines offered under the national vaccination programme, such as three doses of the Sinovac-CoronaVac or Sinopharm vaccines
• Vaccination regimens of other World Health Organization Emergency Use Listing vaccines, such as one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, or two doses of the AstraZeneca, Covishield, Covaxin or Novavax vaccines

MOH said that it has been progressively sending out SMS notifications to remind the people who need to get their booster shots.

"We strongly urge these individuals to make their appointments or walk in to any of the vaccination centres for their booster dose as soon as possible."

Those who are medically ineligible for mRNA vaccines may consider taking the Sinovac-CoronaVac vaccine as a booster vaccine, but MOH added that the Sinovac-CoronaVac vaccine is "otherwise not recommended as a booster vaccine". 

"Individuals who are unsure whether they require a booster vaccine can visit https://go.gov.sg/vax-status-query to access the online calculator to check if they would be required to receive a booster shot," MOH said. 

Walk-ins to vaccination centres are available from Mondays to Thursdays before 7pm, and the list of vaccination centres can be found at www.vaccine.gov.sg/locations-vcs.