A screenshot showing Dr Sim (right) and Wee during the Facebook live session yesterday.
KUCHING (Jan 2): Incoming Deputy Chief Minister Dato Sri Dr Sim Kui Hian said on New Year’s Day that the Ministry of Health (MoH) plans to inoculate children aged from three to 11 in Sarawak next month to protect this age group against Covid-19.
“The vaccine to be used will be Pfizer-BioNTech, but the dose to be given will be different than that for adults. The dose for these children will be less,” he said during Kuching South Mayor Datuk Wee Hong Seng’s weekly Facebook live ‘Shall Wee Talk?’ yesterday.
Dr Sim said he has discussed with Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin about vaccinating children aged 12 and below as Sarawak moves into Phase 4 of the National Recovery Plan (NRP) tomorrow (Jan 3).
He said children aged 12 and below would have to return to school for physical classes as the state moves into Phase 4 of the NRP.
He reminded the community not to be complacent in light of the emergence of the Omicron variant cases in Sarawak.
According to him, the experts have predicted that the Omicron variant will penetrate the society by end of this month.
“Even though the Omicron variant is milder in severity, it is more infectious. We shall not take it lightly.”
He cautioned that complacency may eventually lead to various challenges to be faced by health personnel given the lack of resources.
Despite so, Dr Sim was glad that Sarawakians have responded positively to the booster dose vaccination drive, with Sarawak recording the highest inoculation rate.