COVID-19: 1st group of Singapore residents invited for walk-in 2nd booster shot
SINGAPORE — Walk-in COVID-19 vaccinations for the second booster dose will be available to eligible individuals aged 80 years old and above from Friday (8 April). They are the first group in Singapore to be invited for their second booster shot.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) said in media release on Wednesday that these individuals may walk in to any vaccination centre (VCs), the 200-odd participating Public Health Preparedness Clinics (PHPCs) or polyclinics to receive their second booster dose. The list of VCs, participating PHPCs and polyclinics can be found at this website.
An SMS with a personalised booking link will also be sent to their mobile number, should they prefer to book an appointment online. Walk-ins to VCs are available any day of the week before 7pm.
Who are recommended to receive second booster dose
The multi-ministry taskforce on COVID-19 had announced on 24 March that it had accepted the recommendation by the Expert Committee on COVID-19 Vaccination for all persons aged 80 years and above, persons living in aged care facilities, and medically vulnerable persons to receive a second booster dose from about five months after receiving their first booster dose.
MOH said that persons living in aged care facilities such as nursing homes tend to have co-morbidities, and should receive a second booster dose even if they have not reached 80 years of age. For this group, the second booster dose will be organised through the respective aged care facilities and rolled out progressively.
Persons aged 12 years and above who are medically vulnerable and at increased risk of severe disease due to significant medical risk factors, will need to bring along a referral memo from their treating doctors to any VC, participating PHPC or polyclinic to receive their second booster dose. These include persons with chronic diseases of the heart, lungs, kidneys, liver and other organ systems.
Immunocompromised persons are recommended to receive three doses as part of their primary enhanced series and to receive the first booster dose around five months after the third dose of their enhanced primary series. There is no recommendation for a second booster dose for this group at the moment.
For persons eligible to receive a second booster dose, the recommendation will not result in a change in their vaccination status for vaccination-differentiated safe management measures if they choose not to receive the second booster dose. Nevertheless, MOH strongly encourages them to go for the second booster to protect themselves.
There are currently no recommendations for healthy persons in younger age groups to receive a second booster dose, as they have better immune responses to vaccination and are at a lower risk of severe disease.
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