Minister Of Health Budi Ensures Drugs And Vaccines Are Available In The Face Of The Mpox Outbreak

Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin when delivering information regarding Mpox at the Jakarta Presidential Palace complex, Tuesday (27/8/2024). (ANTARA/Andi Firdaus/aa).

Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin said the provision of drugs to vaccines was a mitigation strategy carried out by the government in responding to the Mpox disease outbreak that is currently sweeping the world. His party has brought in 1,000 doses of the Mpox vaccine, which now has 40 doses remaining to be sent to Bali. "We send it to Bali first for high-risk people such as laboratory workers, health workers, then high-risk groups, we vaccinate them," Budi said at the Jakarta Presidential Palace complex, as reported by Antara, Tuesday, August 27. Minister of Health Budi also mentioned that the government is working on procuring more Mpox vaccines from Japan, which is expected to arrive in the near future. "We bought this vaccine from Denmark, some from Japan, the Japanese they have not exported. Later, the President's direction will try to approach the Japanese government, whether we can bring in the Mpox vaccine from Japan," he said. In terms of treatment facilities, Minister of Health Budi ensured that all hospitals in Bali and Jakarta had been prepared with the necessary medicines. He emphasized that all patients infected with Mpox were confirmed to have recovered with the right treatment. "Because of our experience, if you get 100 percent recover," he said. He explained that the Mpox in Indonesia detected 88 cases was the 2B variant, which has a fatality rate much lower than the 1B variant that spreads in Africa. "For 1B, the fatality rate is high, close to 10 percent. If we are still 0.1 percent. This 1B variant has not spread anywhere except for two countries, namely Sweden and Thailand, others in Africa. Why? Because they also come from Africa," he said. Budi said that Mpox transmission occurs through physical contact and in certain groups, so the risk of spreading is not as fast as COVID-19 Regarding Mpox vaccination, the Minister of Health ensures that it is available in Indonesia, and is returning through a shopping allocation of IDR 3.5 million per dose. Although the Mpox vaccine is quite expensive, said Budi, this vaccine will be prioritized for high-risk groups and areas with outbreaks. Currently, new Mpox cases were found in Java and the Riau Islands.

Minister of Health Budi appealed to the public to remain vigilant but not to worry too much.