FOR some people, a closer look at their vaccination information on MySejahtera has turned up the shocking information that they could have been the recipients of expired Covid-19 vaccines.

At least three people The Malaysian Insight spoke to said they discovered this when checking the app for their eligibility for a booster shot.

They said they found out that the vaccine doses they received had expiry dates that preceded the dates they got the shots.

All three of them were recipients of the AstraZeneca doses.

Kuala Lumpur resident Previn, who did not want to give his full name, said the date published on MySejahtera showed that his second dose was expired

He received his second dose on July 27 but the vaccine had an expiry date of June 30 on the app.

“We trusted the government with the vaccination programme and now I find I was given an expired vaccine. This is the worst thing. It’s irresponsible. They have to take full responsibility for this,” said the 27-year-old.

The booster shot is to be taken six months after the second dose for people whose primary doses were Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines, and three months after the second dose for those who received Sinovac and Sinopharm.

Those who received their second Pfizer or AstraZeneca shot in June are now due to get appointments for their booster dose.

As of November 27,  2.19 million booster jabs have been administered in Malaysia, data from the Health Ministry’s CovidNow website showed.

Since the vaccination rollout on February 24, more than 77% of the population have been fully vaccinated; more than 96% of adults have been fully dosed; and 84% of 12 to 17-year-olds have completed the course.

A person who wanted to be known as Amir said he received an expired vaccine for his first dose.

“The date of my first dose was July 17 but the expiry date of the vaccine is shown as June 30.

“I’m in a state of panic. How can the government be so irresponsible in such a matter. They are dealing with people’s lives,” Amir said. 

Another person, who wished to be known as Ming, said she received an expired AstraZeneca vaccine for her second dose when she checked the MySejahtera app. 

“I hope this is just a technical glitch and nothing more,” the 30-year-old said. 

“It’s very serious. The ministry should have checked all this before administering the vaccine.”

All three individuals received vaccines from the same A1013 batch. 

A Health Ministry official responding to a query from The Malaysian Insight said the error lay in the publication of the wrong expiry date in the app.

“A check with the vaccine management system administrator and the certificate of release issued by National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (NPRA) for batch number A1013, AstraZeneca vaccine (as per the complaint received), found that the expiry date for the batch was 31 October 2021 instead of 30 June 2021, as displayed.”

Pharmacy Services is currently checking with the MySejahtera system administrator for more information.

The official said for verification, the complainants and others facing similar issues should email their digital vaccination certificate in PDF format to [email protected]. – November 29, 2021.