Deputy Health Minister Dr Lee Boon Chye has warned the people against buying influenza A vaccines online in the midst of a shortage in private hospitals.
“The Ministry of Health has never approved the sale of vaccines online,” he said, according to a report in The Malaysian Insight today.
Lee explained that the vaccines sold online may be expired or counterfeit, as vaccines are produced overseas according to the specific strain of virus at the time.
This means that vaccines manufactured a year ago may be ineffective now due to potential mutations.
“In other words, the vaccine you gave last year or the previous year is different from this year, hence it doesn’t rule out the possibility that those sold online could have expired,” said Lee, who is a trained medical doctor.
Vaccines also require special handling, he said, which makes it risky to send vaccines through the post.
“There are standard operating procedures for storing vaccines, which have to be kept under low temperature. If the temperature is not controlled, the vaccine will not be effective. Therefore, buying vaccines online is really not encouraged,” he said.
Hospitals have to apply for an import permit from the ministry to import vaccines.
Deadly coronavirus
A Facebook post by a 24-hour clinic in Bangi has revealed that there have been incidents where parents were buying vaccines elsewhere and bringing it to their doctors to inject into their children.
The clinic said many people had requested a similar service but that it would not use vaccines from unknown origins for its patients.
It was previously reported that private hospitals have been struggling to meet the demand for the influenza A vaccine amid a flu outbreak.
Separately, the Penang Health Department has been instructed to be on high alert for the potential spread of coronavirus, a new strain of flu virus linked to the deadly severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).
Chinese health authorities reported yesterday that at least 17 people have now died of the respiratory infection, almost tripling the death toll in a day.
“In conjunction with Visit Malaysia 2020 and Experience Penang 2020, I will ensure all units from the Health Department will be extra vigilant in exercising caution to prevent the virus from spreading.
“Thermal screening will be compulsory at all gates for international flights at the Penang International Airport.
“This proactive measure is to ensure the spread of the contagious virus can be contained,” said state health committee chairperson Afif Bahardin, as reported by The Star.
Emergency meeting
Penangites who have just returned from China, where coronavirus was first reported, within the last 14 days with symptoms such as cough or fever are encouraged to immediately get screened, he said.
It was previously reported that there was an emergency meeting between the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Chinese authorities yesterday to determine the next steps to tackle the coronavirus.
To date, the virus, which is also known as the Wuhan virus, has infected at least 549 people, almost all of them in Hubei province, where Wuhan is the capital.
The Health Ministry has said it would monitor the outcome of the meeting, which would determine the next course of action for the country.
