Singapore mulls strategy to give more people at least one Covid-19 vaccine dose

THE Singapore government is considering giving as many people as possible at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine in the second phase of the nation's vaccination exercise.

Many international studies show that at least one dose can provide good protection from the virus without compromising efficacy, new Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said at a Covid-19 multi-ministry task force press conference on Sunday evening.

"Our scientists have been studying this. We have an expert committee, and the evidence locally and overseas is...it's reasonable for (the second dose) to be further apart (from the first). Instead of 21 or 28 days, it can possibly extend to six to eight weeks without materially impacting the efficacy of the vaccine," said Mr Ong.

Such a strategy will be helpful, given "the current situation where we have more cases", Mr Ong added. He gave the assurance that those who already have appointments for their second dose will not be affected.

That said, the pace of vaccination is limited by the pace of vaccine supplies arriving in Singapore.

The first phase of Singapore's vaccination exercise was focused on those who needed it most, including vulnerable members of society and those on the frontlines. To date, a quarter of Singapore's population is already fully vaccinated, while a third has been given at least one dose.

New Education Minister Chan Chun Sing, who was also at the press conference, said that the main constraint facing Singapore is the supply of the vaccines. He said, however, that the country's vaccination capacity is always higher than the availability of the vaccines.