IndoVac Vaccine Becomes a Booster Vaccine, Bio Farma Pursues a Production Target of 5 Million Doses by the End of the Year

The COVID-19 IndoVac vaccine produced by PT Bio Farma Persero was launched by President Joko Widodo in Bandung, West Java, Thursday (13/10/2022). (ANTARA/HO-Biro Press Secretariat President)

JAKARTA - The IndoVac vaccine belonging to SOE Bio Farma will prepare 5 million doses of the second COVID-19 booster vaccine to be given to the elderly. Director of Bio Farma, Honesti Basyir, said this 5 million doses will be produced by the end of this year.

“We will prepare the IndoVac vaccine as booster for the elderly group. The production process has been carried out since the issuance of the EUA for primary doses at the end of September 2022, at least, we will produce as many as 5 million doses, until the end of 2022", Honesti said in an official statement, Friday, November 25.

Honesti continued, IndoVac is expected to boost the coverage of booster vaccine usage, which currently only reaches 36 percent. He added that this step was taken following the issuance of Circular Number HK.02.02/C/5565/2022 regarding the 2nd Booster Dose of COVID-19 Vaccination for the Elderly Group issued on November 22, 2022, from the Indonesian Ministry of Health.

"We hope that with the issuance of this Circular from the Ministry of Health, the IndoVac vaccine can help achieve the target of the COVID-19 booster vaccine in Indonesia, especially for the elderly", he continued.

He further added that the provision of this booster needs to be done to provide additional protection to the elderly group who are quite vulnerable to the Coronavirus attack, and most importantly to reduce the severity and even death from COVID-19.

"The second booster dose vaccination for the elderly can be done in health care facilities", Honesti added.

Before obtaining the EUA Booster, the Indovac vaccine which was inaugurated by the President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo on October 13, 2022, had first received the EUA for the primary dose at the end of September 2022, and at almost the same time, IndoVac had officially received a Fatwa and Halal Decree from The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), thus the IndoVac vaccine has met the safe and halal criteria.

Based on the results of the EUA booster given by the POM Agency, the IndoVac vaccine is given at an interval of at least six months after the primary dose of vaccine and can be used for those who have received the Sinovac vaccine for the primary dose. IndoVac vaccine will be given in a full dose or as much as 0.5 ml.

This booster needs to be given, considering that on average people who have received the second dose of the vaccine, it has been more than six months since the second dose, so there is a potential for decreased immunity against the COVID-19 virus attack.

"Thus, the provision of a COVID-19 vaccine booster aims to increase antibodies against the COVID-19 virus for people who have received a complete primary dose of the COVID-19 vaccine", Honesti explained.

Just so you know, this vaccine contains a Domestic Component Level (TKDN) of 90.3 percent which is also the result of collaboration between Bio Farma and Baylor College of Medicine from the US.

Honesti said, Bio Farma is also conducting clinical trials of the IndoVac COVID-19 vaccine for children on October 9, 2022, involving 620 children and in collaboration with Andalas University Medical Faculty (UNAND) Padang.

In addition to FK UNAND, a clinical trial that will involve as many as 1050 subjects with an age range of 7 to 17 years and in collaboration with the Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Indonesia (FK UI) Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FK UGM) for the target of publishing EUA for children will be released in early December 2022.