Gotong Royong Vaccine Prices Considered Expensive, Kadin Chairman Rosan Roeslani: Already Fit To Entrepreneurs' Capabilities

JAKARTA - The government has set the price of vaccines in the Gotong Royong Vaccination Program, which is IDR 321,660 per dose and the maximum tariff for vaccination services is IDR 117,910 per one vaccine injection. Meanwhile, one person needs two doses, so the price to be paid is IDR 879,140. This price is still considered too high.

Responding to this, the Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN), Rosan Perkasa Roeslani, emphasized that the pricing of vaccines was based on the results of the previous survey. The survey was conducted on companies that are members of Kadin and non-Kadin companies.

Furthermore, said Rosan, from the survey results it was found that 78 percent of companies were willing to pay for vaccines below IDR 500,000 per employee. While the rest agreed on the figure of IDR 1 million to IDR 1.5 million.

"So this range is in accordance with our capabilities and the survey we conducted. So 78 percent said they are," he said in a virtual press conference, Wednesday, May 18.

In fact, said Rosan, many micro, small and medium enterprises (UKM) have registered themselves to participate in the Gotong Royong Vaccination Program. Of the total 22,736 companies that registered, 7,000 of them were MSMEs.

"Indeed, we see that many MSMEs are under pressure because of COVID-19, which is significant. But it turns out that on the one hand there are also many MSMEs that can still run well. They want to participate in this mutual cooperation vaccine," he explained.

Rosan explained that the vaccine price set was also the result of input from the management of a number of private companies and the government. Therefore, the independent vaccination rate benchmark is considered appropriate.

"For all companies to provide input, how much is the input so that later it will be determined based on the input of PT Bio Farma, also to the Ministry of Health so that when the price is entered it turns out to be backward. And this price is in accordance with the survey on the ability of the business world which registered with us," he said.

"The price of this (Gotong Royong) vaccine is in accordance with the survey price and the ability of the business world registered with us. So I can confirm that this price is in accordance with the expectations of the business world," he continued.

Previously, a number of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to the hotel and restaurant industry considered that the self-vaccination rate was too expensive. In fact, not all entrepreneurs can participate in the financing scheme.

"Expensive, unable to afford MSMEs. They end up implementing health protocols," said Ikhsan Ingratubun, Chairman of the Indonesian MSME Association, as reported by BBC News Indonesia.