KUALA LUMPUR: The government does not intend to make booster doses a mandatory condition to complete dosage of Covid-19 vaccines for Malaysians, for now, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.
Deputy Health Minister II Datuk Aaron Ago Dagang said that just like for the first and second dose shots, taking the booster dose was a voluntary decision.
"Although the percentage in uptake of booster dose is relatively slow, which is only 10.83 percent so far, we cannot make the booster shots mandatory.
"But with the emergence of the Omicron variant which is of concern, we recommend that the booster dose be taken," he said during the question-and-answer session.
He was replying to a supplementary question from Steven Choong Shiau Yoon (Ind-Tebrau) on whether the Ministry of Health (MOH) would make the booster dose a condition for fully vaccinated status.
There were 30 to 40 per cent of fully vaccinated recipients (two doses) refusing to take the booster dose, he added.
Elaborating further, Aaron said the MOH will continue to actively implement measures and campaigns to ensure that fully vaccinated recipients receive the booster dose. – BERNAMA