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Covid-19 booster jabs to be extended to persons aged 12 to 17 from early February: MOH

SINGAPORE — The national booster programme for Covid-19 vaccination will be extended to persons aged 12 to 17 from early February, the national Covid-19 task force announced on Friday (Jan 21).

From early February, adolescents aged 12 to 17 will progressively receive invitations to take their Covid-19 vaccine booster shots, starting with those aged 16 and 17, followed by those aged 12 to 15.
From early February, adolescents aged 12 to 17 will progressively receive invitations to take their Covid-19 vaccine booster shots, starting with those aged 16 and 17, followed by those aged 12 to 15.
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SINGAPORE — The national booster programme for Covid-19 vaccination will be extended to persons aged 12 to 17 from early February, the national Covid-19 task force announced on Friday (Jan 21).

In line with this extension, from March 14, those aged between 12 and 17 who have completed their primary vaccine doses would be considered fully vaccinated for only 270 days after their last dose, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said.

These adolescents will require a booster dose to maintain their fully vaccinated status thereafter.

From early February, those in this age group will progressively receive invitations to take their booster shots, starting with those aged 16 and 17, followed by those aged 12 to 15.

Parental or guardian consent will be required to book an appointment.

MOH said: “Parents or guardians of these individuals will receive an SMS (phone text message) with a personalised booking link to the mobile number that they had registered with for the primary series, to provide consent and book their child or ward’s booster vaccination appointment." 

For those who are medically ineligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, they will be offered a Sinovac-CoronaVac booster dose under a dedicated public health programme. This programme will also be extended to children aged five to 11 who are medically ineligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for their primary vaccination jabs.

Those aged 12 to 17 can take their booster dose at any vaccination centre offering the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and should take along their student identification card. If that is not available, they may produce other forms of identification such as their birth certificate, passport or Singpass digital identity.

Those aged 13 and older do not require their parents or guardians to accompany them on the day of vaccination, but parents and guardians must accompany those aged 12 as well as students from special education schools.

“MOH and the Health Promotion Board will work with special education schools, and more details will be shared by special education schools with parents or guardians at a later date,” the ministry added.

The Government earlier announced that from Feb 14, those aged 18 and older who have completed their primary vaccine doses and are eligible for a booster shot will be deemed fully vaccinated only for 270 days after the last dose in the primary series of the vaccine.

MOH said on Friday that those who have recovered from Covid-19 and have taken their primary vaccination jabs do not require a booster dose at this point. They will continue to be considered fully vaccinated after Feb 14.

It is safe, though, for such persons to receive a booster shot five months after their last dose and vaccination centres will not turn them away, MOH added. 

Persons aged 12 and above who have been offered the booster shot should not delay getting it beyond nine months after the last dose of their primary vaccination jabs, it advised.

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Covid-19 coronavirus vaccine vaccine booster vaccination children teenagers

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