“Up until now, the government has yet to release a technical regulation regarding [pre-order COVID-19 vaccines],” Bio Farma spokesperson Bambang Heriyanto said on Sunday.

Bambang added that the government was still working on the COVID-19 vaccination schemes for both the government’s program and independently purchased vaccinations.

Therefore, Bio Farma had yet to offer a pre-order service for independently purchased vaccination for both healthcare facilities and individuals.

With regard to COVID-19 vaccination in hospitals, clinics and other facilities, Bio Farma is still working on the registration and verification process for independently purchased vaccines through official associations.

He asked healthcare facilities to wait for the official announcement from the government for the pre-order service.

“For more information, kindly contact Bio Farma through its official email mail@biofarma.co.id,” he said. 

Bio Farma is currently waiting for clinical trial reports from Padjajaran University’s Medical School research team in Bandung, West Java. 

The company plans to submit the report to the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) in mid-January 2021 as the basis for the BPOM to issue the emergency use authorization (EUA).

However, it remains unclear when the government will roll out the vaccine for public use, as the government is still waiting for emergency approval from the BPOM, while also ramping up the infrastructure required.

Prior to the vaccine’s arrival, the BPOM had said it would not authorize emergency use of a Sinovac candidate vaccine in December because of a lack of data on its effectiveness. The agency also rebuked the government for stating a target to get emergency approval this month. BPOM head Penny Kusumastuti Lukito estimated that approval could come in the third or fourth week of January 2021.

Bio Farma said that, while it was waiting for the EUA, it was developing the digital infrastructure to support both the government's vaccination program and independently purchased vaccinations.  

Bio Farma digital healthcare director Soleh Udin Al Ayubi explained last week that the infrastructure would comprise four phases, namely tracking and tracing technology, distribution, a pre-order facility and vaccination report.

Soleh mentioned that the digital infrastructure would have various benefits for consumers, which included a pre-order service for independently purchased vaccinations.  

The pre-order facility would also prevent vaccine hoarding as it provided Bio Farma with vaccine requests in each area.

“Therefore, we can avoid irresponsible parties [who plan to hoard vaccines],” he added. 

A total of 1.2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines produced by China's Sinovac Biotech are now stored in a warehouse of Bio Farma in Bandung, West Java, after being flown into Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on Dec. 6. 

Bio Farma president director Honesti Basyir said that 3 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been allocated for medical workers, in line with recommendations and research conducted by the Indonesian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ITAGI). 

Honesti explained that the first phase of the vaccination program would be focused on high-risk medical workers in seven provinces in Java and Bali, followed by medical workers without comorbidities in other provinces. (adi/jes)