S’poreans can choose which Covid-19 vaccine to take

Singapore – People can now choose which Covid-19 vaccine they prefer to take. All they have to do is check the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) website which contains a complete list of vaccination centres and go to the centre which offers the vaccine they prefer.

To date, only the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines are approved for use in Singapore.

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is offered at 27 out of the 38 listed centres, while the rest are using the Moderna vaccine.

Here is the list of vaccination centres in Singapore. MOH also has separate lists of polyclinics and clinics administering the Covid-19 vaccines.

According to a Straits Times report on Tuesday (Apr 13), people can choose which vaccine they will take by visiting the vaccination centre, clinic or polyclinic that offers that particular dose.

It should be noted that there is a notice on the website advising the public that certain centres may have limited slots “due to the strong demand for Covid-19 vaccinations in Singapore and limited supplies”.

“Each vaccination centre will only stock and administer one type of vaccine,” said MOH last month.

“Individuals must select the same vaccination centre for both their first and second appointments when booking via the national appointment system.”

The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses taken three and four weeks apart, respectively.

Currently, Singaporeans aged 45 to 59 can register to get vaccinated.

The option to choose is a change in direction given the previous statement by the Multi-Ministry Taskforce (MTF) for Covid-19 that individuals were not allowed to pick which vaccine they will receive.

Being able to choose would “unnecessarily complicate the already complex vaccination programme,” said Minister for Health and MTF co-chair Gan Kim Yong.

The Moderna vaccine began to be used last month. Pfize’s was the first vaccine approved for use in Singapore, where shipments began to arrive in December.

Minister for Education and MTF co-chair  Lawrence Wong said that the two vaccines worked similarly and had about the same efficacy rates worldwide.

The Independent Singapore has reached out to MOH for a statement./TISG

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