"So far, we have distributed 2.5 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine and five million doses of vaccine from the Covax facility," the ministry's Secretary General Kunta Wibawa Dasa Nugraha stated at the press conference held to mark the 58th National Health Day 2022 in Jakarta on Tuesday.
He noted that the government took the procurement of imported vaccines while awaiting domestic vaccine production that had currently begun.
The domestic vaccines are the primary and booster doses of the IndoVac vaccine produced by PT Bio Farma and the primary dose of InaVac vaccine produced by PT Biotis Pharmaceutical Indonesia.
"Hopefully, we can meet the vaccine needs in the country," he added.
Nugraha stated that the transition from a pandemic to an endemic status is a process that should be addressed wisely by adhering to health protocols and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
"We cannot eliminate the latest variant of COVID-19. Every day, we monitor the situation, and there are reports of developments," he affirmed.
Based on the daily update of COVID-19 cases from the COVID-19 Handling Task Force as of Monday, an additional 3,662 cases were reported, 22 patients died, and 2,495 patients recovered.
With these additions, since March 2020, there were 6,521,292 positive COVID-19 cases in Indonesia, 158,829 deaths, 6,325,415 recovered patients, and 37,048 active cases.
"Announcement of the endemic must follow the provisions of the World Health Organization (WHO) globally," he remarked.
During the current transition period, Nugraha reminded the public to maintain health protocols and consume healthy food.
"Promotional and preventive measures are important to stay healthy. If you are sick, the cost is expensive, especially for those with comorbidities, and they must prepare themselves better," he continued.
Regarding the latest variant of XBB, Nugraha noted that the number of cases had been increasing, although most of the patients experienced mild symptoms.
"I realize that the booster vaccination coverage is still low, and we need to encourage people to receive booster vaccine in an effort to increase their immune system. I want them to have high immunity while entering 2023," he added.
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Translator: Andi Firdaus, Resinta S
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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