President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has regulated booster vaccine as one of the travel requirements. We do not want another spike in COVID-19 casesJakarta (ANTARA) - The government's plan to implement booster vaccine as a travel requirement is a measure to tighten health protocols in line with the increasing cases of COVID-19 in several regions, Health Ministry's spokesperson, Mohammad Syahril stated.
"President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has regulated booster vaccine as one of the travel requirements. We do not want another spike in COVID-19 cases," he said when contacted by ANTARA here, Tuesday.
The spokesperson noted that the national COVID-19 pandemic situation was under control in June 2022, with a positivity rate indicator below 1.15 percent and a transmission rate of 1.03 per 100 thousand inhabitants per week.
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Both these situations are in accordance with the standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO), specifically for the positivity rate of below five percent and for the transmission rate below 20 per 100 thousand inhabitants per week.
"The condition used to be under control, marked by the easing in the masks regulation in open space," Syahril stated.
He later remarked that the pandemic situation caused fluctuations in the number of cases. On June 30, 2022, the number of cases peaked at 2,200, but in the last four days, the number of cases declined.
On July 1-4, the national count of confirmed COVID-19 cases declined consistently to 1,434.
"Meaning that the cases do not always increase. Likewise, the positivity rate also decreases," he pointed out.
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However, the increase in cases to more than one thousand patients is a warning to the public regarding the spread of the current Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, Syahril stated.
"Now, we are tightening health protocols. Virus transmission is caused by indiscipline in carrying out health protocols and stagnant vaccination," he noted.
Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment and concurrently Coordinator of Community Activity Restriction (PPKM) for the Java-Bali region, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, stated that the need for booster vaccine as a travel requirement will be implemented in the next two weeks at the latest.
The decision refers to the results of a limited cabinet meeting led by President Jokowi and will be regulated through the COVID-19 Task Force regulation and other derivative regulations.
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Translator: Andi Firdaus, Resinta S
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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