Jakarta (ANTARA) - At least 530,547 people received the booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on Friday, bringing the total tally to 16,005,165, the Task Force for Handling COVID-19 reported.

Based on data received from the task force in Jakarta on Friday, 718,563 people received the second dose, bringing the total number of fully vaccinated people to 153,448,151.

Meanwhile, the number of first dose recipients increased by 301,391 to reach 194,437,519.

Even after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, people have been advised to continue to apply the health protocols, namely wearing masks, washing hands with soap and running water, maintaining distance, avoiding crowds, and reducing mobility.

Earlier, the task force reported that 9,528 positive cases of COVID-19 were recorded in Indonesia on Friday, bringing the total case count to 5,948,610.

The number of recoveries increased by 25,827 to reach 5,549,220, while the death toll climbed by 199 to 153,411.

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The pre-endemic health protocols are currently being finalized and they will be implemented as soon as the COVID-19 pandemic subsides, the Health Ministry said earlier.

The pre-endemic health protocols have been prepared by involving several stakeholders such as epidemiologists and health practitioners, spokesperson for the Health Ministry, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, said.

The protocols do away with negative antigen or PCR tests requirements for fully vaccinated domestic travelers arriving via land, sea, and air, she said.

They also cover changes to the limits placed on the capacity of public spaces such as stadiums and shopping centers, she said.

Currently, there has been a decline in COVID-19 cases nationally and the reproductive number of the virus has also been reported to have fallen in all heavily populated islands in Indonesia, she noted.

However, there are still five provinces that are still witnessing an increasing trend—Aceh, East Nusa Tenggara, Central Sulawesi, Gorontalo, and North Kalimantan, the spokesperson informed.

Tarmizi said the rate of hospitalization nationally has also continued to decline. As many as 60 percent of patients who are currently being treated are either asymptomatic or showing mild symptoms, she added.

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Translator: Martha H, Azis Kurmala
Editor: Suharto
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