Indonesia's Health Minister, Budi Gunadi Sadikin. (Image via Kemenkes)

Indonesia Health Ministry targets 34 provinces for COVID-19 vaccine by January 2021

Speaking on Thursday, Indonesia's Minister of Health, Budi Gunadi Sadikin, stated his target of the distribution of Sinovac's vaccine for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) to 34 provinces by January 2021. During that time, Budi wanted the national vaccination program to reach all the medical teams as the frontline.

The statement came as Indonesia officially received 1.8 million dosages of Sinovac's COVID-19 vaccine, CoronaVac. The number also marked the second batch of procurement. Previously, the Indonesian Government had received 1.2 million dosages of CoronaVac.

The newly appointed Health Minister stated that the vaccination program is an essential strategy in resolving the raging COVID-19 pandemic in the country. Therefore, Budi wanted all Indonesian people to support the national vaccination program. The Indonesian Government will monitor the COVID-19 vaccine distribution online, with the same system applied by the ride-hailing services such as GoJek and Grab.

As the vaccine is valuable, Budi explained that online monitoring will cover all of the processes, starting from the delivery, vaccine storage, until its distribution to logistics points in each province, cities, hospitals, and even clinics.

Reportedly, there are six groups prioritized for the COVID-19 vaccine, regulated in the Regulation of the Health Ministry No. 84 of 2020 on the Implementation of Vaccination for Pandemic Control. Medical workers with Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) and Police (Polri) and public service officials are among the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Source: https://bit.ly/38MnZw0