TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Government prepares groundwork for booster shot rollout
Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto said the government would soon amend some of its regulations to allow booster shots be given to the public.
Change Size
Stay alert: Health workers vaccinate residents for COVID-19 during a mobile vaccination drive at the Cipedak subdistrict office in South Jakarta on July 13. (Antara/Indrianto Eko Suwarso)
T
he government is laying the groundwork to expand the rollout of booster shots in response to the contagious Omicron variant, but experts have said the government should prioritize expanding the two-dose regimen to partially vaccinated or unvaccinated people.
The government’s vaccination strategy, including its booster expansion plan, is considered among the key pillars to mitigate the threat of the Omicron variant, which has already spread to more than 90 countries since it was detected last month, as it plans to keep the current curbs unchanged unless certain thresholds are passed.
Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto said the government would soon amend some of its regulations to allow booster shots be given to the public.
“The government is working to soon issue a revision of a presidential regulation and a health ministerial regulation [to facilitate the rollout of] booster shots,” said Airlangga in a press briefing on Monday.
The Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) had already started the process to authorize emergency use of the Sinovac, AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines, Airlangga said. He went on to add that President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo had instructed that Indonesian-made vaccine Merah Putih should be considered for booster shots.
Booster shot rollout plan
In a hearing with lawmakers last week, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said the rollout of booster shots for the public would begin in January, earlier than the initial plan in response to Omicron outbreaks around the globe. So far, only health workers have been authorized to receive booster shots in the country.
