PETALING JAYA: Booster shots for Covid-19 may be a forgotten issue, but questions are being asked in medical circles about what has happened to the plan to procure millions of doses of a new generation bivalent vaccine to fight the deadly infectious disease.

With two years having passed since the Health Ministry announced the plan, talk is that the ministry might have to scout for the latest version of the vaccine with the sourced bivalent variants already outdated.

A bivalent vaccine works by stimulating an immune response against two different antigens, such as two different viruses or other microorganisms.

A check on the MySejahtera app showed that the older Sinovac’s Coronavac booster shots were still being offered for Covid-19.

Then health minister Khairy Jamaluddin announced in October 2022 that the bivalent vaccine by Pfizer-BioNTech would soon arrive in the country.

His successor Dr Zaliha Mustafa said in May last year that the ministry was still awaiting approval of the purchase.

The following month, Deputy Health Minister Datuk Lukanisman Awang Sauni said Malaysia would receive 2.7 million doses of the new generation bivalent Covid-19 vaccine as a replacement for the almost expired stock in the ministry’s inventory.

That was the last news heard about the bivalent vaccines from the ministry.

Prof Dr Sharifa Ezat Wan Puteh, a health economics and public health specialist with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Faculty of Medicine, said it was time that the ministry provide an update on the bivalent vaccine.

“They need to be transparent about it,” she said.

She said the government should also explain what had happened to the leftover Covid-19 vaccines from existing batches.

“The amount spent on purchasing these vaccines is huge and if all had expired, this would be huge wastage,” said Prof Sharifa Ezat, asking whether the vaccines were donated to countries in need of it.

Reports have stated that other countries have progressed beyond the original bivalent vaccine and registered for the XBB.1.5 vaccine early this year, with many others targeting yet another version of an updated vaccine, the JN.1.

Retired health ministry official Datuk Dr Zainal Ariffin Omar said besides coming out with the truth on the bivalent vaccine, the ministry should also come out with its latest policy and advice on Covid-19.

He said the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19 continues to mutate into new strains.

“It is advisable to get vaccinations that match the strain that is circulating, depending on the condition and availability of resources,” he added.

Datuk Dr Lee Boon Chye, a former deputy health minister, also called on the ministry to enlighten the people on the bivalent vaccine purchase.

He said the ministry should also explain its rationale for continuing with repeated booster shots and who should be vaccinated and why.

“After all, we are already in the herd immunity stage and continuous and repeated exposure to the virus is inevitable,” he said.

Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia president Datuk Dr Kuljit Singh said the group was also waiting for the ministry’s latest Covid-19 vaccination policy.

“While the demand for the vaccine has decreased compared with the earlier period, the benefits of administering the bivalent vaccine remain crucial for certain patient groups.

“We will follow the directives of the government,” he said, adding that private hospitals were no longer providing Covid-19 vaccines.

Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) president Datuk Dr Kalwinder Singh Khaira said there was a need for updated Covid-19 vaccines for those in the high risk category.

“We should have updated vaccines for those in the high-risk category who may need to be given a booster based on advice from their doctors,” he added.

Senator Dr RA Lingeshwaran, a former Hospital Sungai Bakap director, said latest guidelines from the World Health Organisation (WHO) suggested that the monovalent Omicron XBB vaccines offered a modestly improved level of protection, compared with the bivalent and monovalent vaccines based on the original Covid-19 virus.

“As for whether we need updated vaccines, we should follow the latest WHO guidelines. WHO also states that if monovalent XBB vaccines were not accessible, any WHO emergency-use listed or prequalified vaccine, whether bivalent or monovalent index virus vaccines, can be used as they still offer protection against severe disease in high-risk groups,” he said.

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/12/18/what-happened-to-bivalent-vaccines