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Calls for second COVID-19 boosters grow
Health experts are pushing for a second COVID-19 booster shot for vulnerable groups, but a Health Ministry official said it was not a priority considering that authorities were still expanding coverage of the third vaccination shot.
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A student receives a COVID-19 booster shot during a vaccine drive on July 13, 2022 at SMA 1 Klaten state senior high school in Central Java. (Antara/Aloysius Jarot Nugroho)
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alls for the government to start administering a fourth jab of the COVID-19 vaccine have grown amid threats of new subvariants and revised predictions over the peak of the current transmission wave, although officials are holding out until mandatory booster shot coverage rises.
The Health Ministry and the Indonesian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ITAGI) are mulling the potential of rolling out a second round of COVID-19 booster shots, although a ministry spokesman said it was not a priority considering that health authorities were still focused on expanding coverage of the third vaccination shot rollout.
“Regarding a fourth vaccine shot, or a second booster, we have not made that a priority just yet,” M. Syahril said on Monday, as quoted by Kompas.com. “We are still focusing on [administering mandatory shots for] those aged 18 and above, and we haven’t even [begun] for those under 18.”
A few days earlier, Syahril said the ministry and ITAGI had considered planning a rollout of the second booster shot, citing a growing trend among other nations and a prediction that the COVID-19 pandemic “might take longer than expected.”
He did not respond to further queries on the matter.
In the meantime, health experts are supportive of talks to start rolling out second booster jabs as soon as possible, particularly for the more vulnerable members of the public, which includes health and public service workers, the elderly and people with other underlying illnesses.
Read also: Govt focuses on increasing booster coverage
