Health Office Asked To Immediately Inject Boosters To Health Workers, Minister Of Health Reminds Complete COVID-19 Vaccine Recipients Are Not Selfish

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JAKARTA - Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin warned that the third dose of COVID-19 vaccine or booster is only allowed for health workers and should not be transferred to the general public. In addition, he also asked for the booster injection to be done quickly.

"Please immediately give the health workers an injection (the COVID-19 vaccine booster, ed). The Health Office will immediately inject it. I sincerely implore you, please don't be transferred to non-health workers," Budi said in an online press conference broadcast on the Presidential Secretariat's YouTube, Monday. , August 2nd.

He said health workers should be a priority in giving booster vaccines so that they are ready to deal with COVID-19 patients. "I really ask that it be immediately injected to all our health workers so that they are better prepared to deal with patients who come in," said Budi.

The Minister of Health said the government had received 4 million doses of the Moderna brand of COVID-19 vaccine from the United States government. Of this amount, 1.5 million doses of vaccine will be given to health workers and have been distributed to all regions in the country.

While the rest, said Budi, will be given to people who have not had access to the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

So, he asked people who have received a complete COVID-19 vaccination not to be selfish and use their morals. The goal is that the vaccine can be used for health workers and residents who have not been vaccinated.

"I know many who want to get a third vaccine booster, please give it to health workers who have to fight to die and live in this pandemic war," he said.

"Please, we prioritize our brothers and sisters, the 140 million Indonesians who have not yet had access to vaccines," added the former Deputy Minister of State-Owned Enterprises.

Previously, the Spokesperson for the COVID-19 Vaccination of the Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) Siti Nadia Tarmizi emphasized that the injection of the three doses of the COVID-19 vaccine was only given to health workers to provide protection for them.

"It is only given to health workers. We have seen the wider community that we have a lot of homework, then the number of people who get vaccinated is still very small," said Siti Nadia Tarmizi in a virtual discussion monitored from Jakarta, reported by Antara, Friday, 16 July.

He explained that the decision was made after listening to the opinions of experts, considering that health workers are a vulnerable group exposed to COVID-19.