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.
House postpones health budget talks until fake vaccine case resolved
Change Size
A medicine and health equipment vendor at the Pramuka Market waits for customers on June 27. National Police members are still investigating the recent fake vaccine distribution case. (Antara/Sigid Kurniawan)
T
he House of Representatives decided on Wednesday to put deliberations of the Health Ministry and Food and Drug Monitoring Agency's 2017 budget on hold until the government had completely resolved the fake vaccine distribution issue.
Member of House Commission IX overseeing health and manpower Ermalena said the commission did not want to touch budget issues unless the government had submitted a complete report detailing the distributors of the fake vaccines, health facilities that administered them and names of individuals exposed to them, as well as sanctions given to those who sold the vaccines to consumers.
"Budget deliberations will be postponed until the fake vaccine issue is settled. We will be thorough as this is related to people's rights," Ermalena said.
The budget deliberations will depend on the BPOM and the Health Ministry's explanation regarding the assessment of the current supervision system for vaccine distribution, Ermalena said, adding that budget allocations would be in accordance with the BPOM's need for supervision in light of the issue.
The commission will hold a meeting on Thursday with representatives from the ministry, BPOM, The National Police’s Criminal Investigation Department, pharmaceutical company Bio Farma, the Indonesian Pediatrician Association, and the fake vaccine task force to discuss the issue from the perspective of policy, budget necessity, and the House's supervision system, Ermalena said.
The recent discovery of a nationwide counterfeit vaccine ring has shaken the nation and disturbed parents, who fear their children may have been administered with the fake vaccines. (dan)
