Still Low, Booster Vaccination Coverage In Riau Islands Is Only 46.65 Percent

Illustration of COVID-19 vaccination in the elderly (elderly). (Antaranews)

KEPRI - The Riau Islands Province COVID-19 Task Force (Kepri) noted that there were 640,693 people or 46.65 percent of people who had injected the third dose of vaccine or booster.

"The achievement of booster vaccination is still relatively low. We once targeted to reach 50 percent by the end of April 2022, but it has not been realized until now," said Riau Islands COVID-19 Handling Task Force Spokesperson Tjetjep Yudiana in Tanjungpinang, Riau Islands, quoted from Antara, Friday July 1.

According to him, the third dose of vaccination is aimed at 1.34 million Riau Islands residents who are at least 18 years old. Until now, the elderly people who have injected the booster vaccine have only reached 28,171 people or 32.33 percent.

"It's still very low," said the former Head of the Riau Islands Health Office.

Tjetjep said that the average citizen who vaccinated the third dose was not for health reasons alone, but to make it easier to get out of the area.

"There are a lot of elderly people who don't leave the area. This kind of thinking is wrong. The COVID-19 vaccination should only be done for health reasons," he said.

The achievement of vaccination for the group of 12-17 year olds in Riau Islands is quite encouraging. Vaccination targets for adolescents reached 207,663 people.

The achievement of the first dose of vaccination for teenagers has reached 220,350 people or 106.11 percent, exceeding the target. While the achievement of the second or complete dose of vaccination was 194,754 people or 93.78 percent.

Meanwhile, the target for the COVID-19 vaccination for children aged 6-11 years in Riau Islands is 221,670 people. The achievement of the first dose of vaccination was 199,720 people or 90.10 percent, while for the second dose it was 164,087 people or 74.02 percent.

"The vaccination program is still running until now," he said.

Tjetjep appealed to residents who meet the requirements to immediately inject vaccines at vaccination booths and posts in regencies and cities in Riau Islands. Vaccination posts are not only opened by the Health Office, but also vertical agencies in districts and cities.

He gave his appreciation to a number of parties who supported the vaccination program, ranging from RT administrators to government institutions and private parties.

"We thank the TNI and Polri, BIN, and other parties who continuously carry out mass vaccination programs," he said.