PETALING JAYA: Those who have recovered from Covid-19 do not need to wait three months to get vaccinated against the disease unless they underwent antibody therapy as part of their treatment, says the Special Committee for Ensuring Access to Covid-19 Vaccine Supply (JKJAV).

JKJAV saw the need to cancel the three-month wait with the emergence of more transmissible variants of the virus.

“While experts have presented evidence to show that Covid-19 patients will develop immunity against the disease for at least three months after their recovery, there is a need to vaccinate them earlier than that with the emergence of new virus variants,” the committee said in a statement on Friday (July 9).

This means that former Covid-19 patients who are free of the virus can keep their appointments on MySejahtera and get vaccinated at the designated vaccination centres (PPV).

However, the committee said patients who underwent anti-SARS-CoV2 monoclonal antibodies or convalescent plasma treatments still had to wait at least 90 days after their recovery to be vaccinated.

It said this was a precautionary measure to avoid any possibility of interference between the antibody therapy and the immunity response induced by the vaccine.

The JKJAV also advised anyone waiting for their Covid-19 results to not go to vaccination centres to get their vaccine and avoid accompanying anyone going to get vaccinated.

“Those who find themselves having to cancel their appointments because of this will automatically be given a new date,”