More vaccination centers now provide mRNA jabs

[webfact]

 

By Tanakorn Sangiam

   

Thai health authorities are now gearing up their effort to achieve the 1 million dose COVID-19 vaccination target through a more proactive approach. The Ministry of Public Health has now increased the availability of mRNA jabs at more vaccination centers, providing easier access to this specific vaccine type for anyone who prefers it.

 

The Ministry of Public Health is now addressing issues that have slowed down the country’s vaccination uptake, one of which is a preference for the mRNA vaccine.

 

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul said Thai people who are still waiting for their vaccine appointment with private hospitals can instead get vaccinated with government-provided mRNA jabs.

 

With most of the alternative vaccine customers based in Bangkok, the Department of Medical Services and the Department of Disease Control have designated the Central Vaccination Center at Bang Sue Grand Station, Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute, and Srithanya Hospital as primary vaccine centers for mRNA jabs.

 

Vaccine recipients at these centers can now have mRNA vaccine as their first and second doses in their primary vaccination schedule.

 

For other provinces, the Ministry of Public Health has ordered provincial public health offices to survey the number of people waiting for their alternative vaccine appointments and to instead offer them government-provided mRNA jabs.

 

The Thai government has previously offered exclusively the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine as the only mRNA vaccine in the country’s inoculation campaign, with this vaccine type largely limited only to younger people, or as the second dose in the mixed vaccine regimen.

 

Previously, people who prefer the mRNA vaccine only had an option to pre-order Moderna jabs out of their pocket with private hospitals in the Alternative Vaccine arrangement, which has seen shipment delays affecting the rollout.

 

The Minister of Public Health stressed that every COVID-19 vaccine procured by the Ministry of Public Health is safe and effective in preventing severe illnesses and deaths.

 

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-- © Copyright NNT 2021-11-27

 

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[mokwit]

I went to Bangsue under the AIS progam* and was offered 2xPfizer, which I took despite not being wild about mRNA vaccines as beggars can't be choosers and I need to get vaxed and I am not in the high risk group for heart complications (note: I was never an "antivaxxer", I just believe in fully informed consent and that you can't mandate a new vaccine technology like mRNA vaccines - must be an informed choice).

 

*thanks TallGuyJohninBangkok - I would not have known about this if you had not posted it and would still be unvaxed rather than now 1/2 vaxed as it were.

Edited November 27, 2021 by mokwit

[mahtin]

OP photo shows Moderna.

So is Moderna now being offered as a free first vaccine to any unvaccinated person in Thailand?

Didn't think so.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

8 minutes ago, mahtin said:

OP photo shows Moderna.

So is Moderna now being offered as a free first vaccine to any unvaccinated person in Thailand?

Didn't think so.

I was going to say,it would have been nice if the OP article had actually said WHICH mRNA vaccine or vaccines the government is now going to be willing to offer as primary vaccinations via those locations in BKK.

 

Pfizer clearly yes... Moderna, who knows?

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 hour ago, mokwit said:

I went to Bangsue under the AIS progam* and was offered 2xPfizer,

 

Appreciate the thanks and mention... Glad to see it worked out...

 

However, it's not really AIS's program... They're just serving as a front door website for access... Those registering thru the AIS website are simply being routed into the MoPH's vacccination program at such locations as Bang Sue.

 

Edited November 27, 2021 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[mokwit]

24 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

I was going to say,it would have been nice if the OP article had actually said WHICH mRNA vaccine or vaccines the government is now going to be willing to offer as primary vaccinations via those locations in BKK.

 

Pfizer clearly yes... Moderna, who knows?

 

Not reliable information maybe, but when I was trying to work out which que I should be in I was asked "Astrazeneca or Moderna?". I said AZ and when I got to the actual registration desk was told it was now 2x Pfizer not 1st AZ, 2nd Pfizer and asked if that was OK. So maybe worth following up to see if Moderna was available.

[TigerandDog]

3 hours ago, mahtin said:

OP photo shows Moderna.

So is Moderna now being offered as a free first vaccine to any unvaccinated person in Thailand?

Didn't think so.

yeah it is. It is currently being offered to some as a free vaccine in Chiang Mai while those that paid for it have been pushed  further back down the queue.

[Chris.B]

3 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

I was going to say,it would have been nice if the OP article had actually said WHICH mRNA vaccine or vaccines the government is now going to be willing to offer as primary vaccinations via those locations in BKK.

 

Pfizer clearly yes... Moderna, who knows?

 

Free Moderna, yes.

 

https://thethaiger.com/news/bangkok/bang-sue-grand-station-to-use-only-pfizer-and-moderna-vaccine

 

[Chris.B]

More vaccines provided to Bangkok but what about the provinces? ☹️

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 hour ago, Chris.B said:

Free Moderna, yes.

 

https://thethaiger.com/news/bangkok/bang-sue-grand-station-to-use-only-pfizer-and-moderna-vaccine

 

 Upon checking, the National News Bureau of Thailand (government) announcement about this -- which is the basis of these various news reports including the vague OP here -- is clear in saying Pfizer AND Moderna...

 

Except with the caveat that they'll supposedly offer whichever one is available on any given day.... And who knows what the government's availability of no-charge Moderna is going to be...at a time when the private hospitals are selling their Moderna doses.

 

"BANGKOK (NNT) - Bang Sue Grand Station Vaccination Center announced that from November 26, the center will only offer Pfizer and Moderna jabs as 1st, 2nd and 3rd doses, depending on what is available on the day."

 

https://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news/detail/TCATG211126123455768

 

 

Edited November 27, 2021 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[Chris.B]

47 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 Upon checking, the National News Bureau of Thailand (government) announcement about this -- which is the basis of these various news reports including the vague OP here -- is clear in saying Pfizer AND Moderna...

 

Except with the caveat that they'll supposedly offer whichever one is available on any given day.... And who knows what the government's availability of no-charge Moderna is going to be...at a time when the private hospitals are selling their Moderna doses.

 

"BANGKOK (NNT) - Bang Sue Grand Station Vaccination Center announced that from November 26, the center will only offer Pfizer and Moderna jabs as 1st, 2nd and 3rd doses, depending on what is available on the day."

 

https://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news/detail/TCATG211126123455768

 

 

You sound like a glass half empty man as against a glass half full? ????

 

Whatever, it is only the people in Greater Bangkok that will benefit from this, again. 

 

[Deli]

_{Nothing like that in Phuket for GF available, And waiting...}

[onthedarkside]

A disallowed private party social media video and ensuing reply post have been removed.

 

Please see the forum's policy on social media content:

 

18) Social Media content is acceptable in most social forums. However, in factual areas such as news, current affairs and health topics, it cannot be used unless it is from a credible news media source or government agency, and must include a weblink to the original source.

[RocketDog]

14 hours ago, Chris.B said:

You sound like a glass half empty man as against a glass half full? ????

 

Whatever, it is only the people in Greater Bangkok that will benefit from this, again. 

 

I won't dispute your claim but offer the following factual information for what it's worth.

 

I paused reading this thread and my Thai Lady immediately tried to register using our Pranburi Prachuap Kirikhan address and her Thai ID using the Trueid link.

 

Registration and confirmation were confirmed she was then ask to select a date/time, which she did, the earliest being Dec 1 at Bangsue. Message said she would be notified.

Minutes later she got an SMSsaying since her first (and only) dose was sinovac she was not elegible for mRNA as second dose.

 

The initial registration process tried to address the acceptable combinations but was ambiguous so we proceeded. 

 

The takeaway is that it was not our location that stopped the process but the vaccine she initially got did. Apparently AZ is OK for first dose but not sinovac.

Naturally we both regret that she settled for sinovac and wish we had waited; it was a hard call to make. 'sFor the record I got my second Pfizer on Sept 29. So she will get AZ as her second dose tomorrow and we look forward to an mRNA booster next year.

 

Such is the chaos brought to the Thai people courtesy of the government's woefully stalled and predictably bungled efforts to protect its people.

 

Good luck to all. 

 

 

[MJCM]

My wife got the Pfizer vaccine just 2 weeks ago in a local government hospital in Buriram, with the 2nd shot on the 9th December

 

And yes we also paid for the Moderna some 5-6 months ago!

[TigerandDog]

3 hours ago, RocketDog said:

I won't dispute your claim but offer the following factual information for what it's worth.

 

I paused reading this thread and my Thai Lady immediately tried to register using our Pranburi Prachuap Kirikhan address and her Thai ID using the Trueid link.

 

Registration and confirmation were confirmed she was then ask to select a date/time, which she did, the earliest being Dec 1 at Bangsue. Message said she would be notified.

Minutes later she got an SMSsaying since her first (and only) dose was sinovac she was not elegible for mRNA as second dose.

 

The initial registration process tried to address the acceptable combinations but was ambiguous so we proceeded. 

 

The takeaway is that it was not our location that stopped the process but the vaccine she initially got did. Apparently AZ is OK for first dose but not sinovac.

Naturally we both regret that she settled for sinovac and wish we had waited; it was a hard call to make. 'sFor the record I got my second Pfizer on Sept 29. So she will get AZ as her second dose tomorrow and we look forward to an mRNA booster next year.

 

Such is the chaos brought to the Thai people courtesy of the government's woefully stalled and predictably bungled efforts to protect its people.

 

Good luck to all. 

 

 

The info your wife received re mRNA not being acceptable if the first dose was Sinovac according to THG was wrong. If Sinovac or Sinopharm was the first jab received, then THG have published a chart clearly showing that after either of these as a first jab, you must wait for 2 months before you can receive Moderna as a 2nd jab.  My wife and I, as well as some friends, registered with THG to receive Moderna and part of the registration process was to advise how many jabs, if any, had been received and which vaccine. The chart was included in the registration form advising the periods that had to be waited before receiving it as either a 2nd or booster jab. I have posted the chart in another thread several weeks ago as support for that statement when it was refuted by some members.

[RocketDog]

1 hour ago, TigerandDog said:

The info your wife received re mRNA not being acceptable if the first dose was Sinovac according to THG was wrong. If Sinovac or Sinopharm was the first jab received, then THG have published a chart clearly showing that after either of these as a first jab, you must wait for 2 months before you can receive Moderna as a 2nd jab.  My wife and I, as well as some friends, registered with THG to receive Moderna and part of the registration process was to advise how many jabs, if any, had been received and which vaccine. The chart was included in the registration form advising the periods that had to be waited before receiving it as either a 2nd or booster jab. I have posted the chart in another thread several weeks ago as support for that statement when it was refuted by some members.

I don't refute your statement.

However, the "info she received" was an SMS message directly from the registration site refusing her after she successfully registered minutes earlier.

 

We won't be driving 3 hours into Bangkok to argue with them.

As I said : chaos.