Govt Assures Enough Vaccine Supply Ahead of Booster Program

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin in a press conference on Tuesday said the government is set to roll out the national booster vaccination on Wednesday, January 12. He also assured the public that the vaccine supply for this program will suffice. 

“The government has enough vaccine supply, either from last year’s vaccine procurement contract that will arrive early this year,” said the Minister on January 11. “There will also be significant supplies this year sourced from global donations, either from COVAX and bilateral partnerships.”

According to Budi, this year’s COVAX facility has increased its commitment to assist Indonesia from the initial 20 percent of the Indonesian population to 30 percent. “This equates to vaccinations for around 27 million people from 54 million vaccine doses,” said the minister.

He explained that Indonesia’s booster shots would be administered across government healthcare facilities such as community health centers (Puskesmas), state hospitals, and hospitals owned by regional governments. 

Those eligible to receive booster vaccines are Indonesian citizens aged 18 years old and above who have received complete vaccine doses for the past six months. However, the Minister made it clear that top priority demographics are the elderly and other vulnerable groups. 

Read: 244 Cities/Regencies Eligible for Booster Rollout

DEWI NURITA