COVID-19 Cases Doubled From Last Week

Spokesperson for the COVID-19 Task Force Wiku Adisasmito/IST

JAKARTA - Spokesperson for the COVID-19 Task Force, Wiku Adisasmito, said that there was a doubling of positive cases of COVID-19 this week from last week.

Wiku explained, currently, positive cases in Indonesia have increased for two consecutive weeks. Two weeks ago, weekly positive cases of 1,200 rose to 1,400 cases last week and rose again to reach 3,000 cases in the last week.

"The number of cases in the last week rose more than double the cases in the previous week. This development must continue to be anticipated considering the increase after the long holiday period can still occur in the coming week", said Wiku in a virtual press conference, Tuesday, January 11.

In fact, said Wiku, in the last week, the addition of positive cases was more than the increase in the number of recoveries of COVID-19 cases

For example, on January 6 yesterday, the daily addition of positive cases reached 533 cases, while the recovery was only 209 cases.

"Even though the data from the previous three weeks showed a fluctuating trend, the addition of recoveries was generally higher than the addition of positive cases", said Wiku.

Wiku said that the condition of the increase in cases needed to be a concern. Because, in dealing with these conditions, an in-depth investigation and analysis are needed regarding the condition of the case and its relation to the proportion of variants circulating in Indonesia.

This includes data and knowledge related to the characteristics of transmission, clinical symptoms, length of treatment, and the risk of death from the currently circulating variants.

"Of course, this needs to be supported by valid and credible data and in real-time representative that is sought by health facilities that are responsive to reporting the development of cases that occur", said Wiku.

Wiku said the increase in positive cases in Indonesia was still largely contributed by foreign travel agents (PPLN).

"In this case, the government ensures that the quarantine for PPLN is carried out strictly so that the positive cases found are handled properly and can no longer be transmitted to the community after the isolation period is over", he said.