Singapore – Those aged 45 to 59 years old can now start registering their interest to receive the Covid-19 vaccine with immediate effect, expanding the Government’s vaccination initiative to the younger population.
“With the vaccination for the prioritised groups well under way, we are now ready to expand the vaccination programme to younger age groups in the population,” said Health Minister Gan Kim Yong on Wednesday (Mar 24) during a press conference by the Covid-19 multi-ministry task force.
“A key factor in how fast we vaccinate our population is the supply of vaccines,” said Mr Gan. He added that the Government would continue monitoring Singapore’s vaccine supplies closely.
According to a press release by the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Wednesday, around 1,109,000 Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered. More than 799,000 individuals have received at least one dose of the vaccine. Among them, about 310,000 individuals have received their second doses and completed the full vaccination regimen.
MOH also announced that good progress had been made since Feb 22, when the vaccination initiative began for seniors, starting first with those aged 70 and above.
With more regular deliveries of vaccine supplies, we had brought forward the vaccination of seniors aged 60 to 69 years old by two weeks to mid-March 2021, said MOH.
“More than 55 per cent of our seniors have received their vaccination or made appointments to do so.”
“We will now roll out the vaccination programme to younger age groups. As they are more familiar with the use of digital technology, we will no longer be sending personalised letters of invitation to them,” said MOH.
There will be a two-step process in place. Interested individuals may register their interest at vaccine.gov.sg. They will then receive an SMS with a personalised URL that will allow them to book an appointment online.
Those who register will receive an SMS as soon as there are vacant slots available for booking. This should happen within a few days of registration, noted MOH.
“We encourage everyone in this age group who is medically eligible to take up this offer so that we can protect ourselves and fellow Singaporeans from Covid-19. Please also encourage your family members and friends to go for their vaccination when they are offered the chance to book their slots,” said MOH. /TISG
Read related: Human clinical trials for Covid-19 oral vaccine beginning June 2021