Mataram Health Office Denies COVID-19 Vaccine Stock Will Be Withdrawn

A vaccinator in Mataram City, West Nusa Tenggara Province, prepares a dose of COVID-19 vaccine/ Antara

JAKARTA - The Mataram City Health Office denied that there was a plan to withdraw vaccine stock from the West Nusa Tenggara Provincial Health Office because the area was considered slow in implementing the COVID-19 vaccination program.

"Our vaccination coverage or herd immunity can be said to be the highest because it has reached 30 percent of the 70 percent target set by the government", said Head of the Mataram City Health Office Dr. H Usman Hadi in Mataram, as reported by Antara, Friday, July 2.

The statement was made in response to the plan of the NTB Provincial Health Office to withdraw vaccine stock in Mataram City because it was considered slow in carrying out COVID-19 vaccination activities.

It is said, the COVID-19 vaccination coverage for residents in Mataram aged 18 years and over has reached around 80,000 people. Meanwhile, our vaccination target is 70 percent or around 300,000 people from the total population of Mataram City of around 450,000 people.

"By looking at the coverage, it is impossible to say it is slow and then the NTB Provincial Health Office is willing to withdraw the vaccine stock we have", he said.

The high vaccination coverage in Mataram City, he continued, was assisted by various groups of people including the TNI/Police, to increase public awareness and participation so that they would want to be vaccinated.

According to him, the stock of COVID-19 vaccines spread in 27 health facilities throughout the city of Mataram, last Wednesday, June 30, was 755 vials and on Thursday, July 1, 625 vials were added.

"So it is impossible if the existing stock is withdrawn again", he said.

Possibly, said Usman, what is meant by the withdrawal of the vaccine stock is the transfer of the distribution of vaccine quotas to districts/cities whose coverage is still low.

"For example, in the 100 vials that will be distributed there is a quota for Mataram City, but because Mataram still has a lot of stock, it has been transferred to other regencies/cities. So it's not withdrawn", he explained.