Mapping of the COVID-19 Vaccine Plan in Indonesia in 2021

Jakarta – “The COVID-19 Vaccination program which will start in early 2021 will be provided free of charge without conditions, whether Indonesians have health insurance or not.” The official statement from Dr. Siti Nadia Tarmizi M. Epid, the spokesperson for COVID-19 Vaccination from the Indonesian Ministry of Health, is like an oasis that quenches people’s thirst for public questions about when the pandemic will end and when will the mapping of the COVID-19 vaccine plan actually be realized?

Now we have entered the beginning of 2021, and it is time for us to know the government’s follow-up on this matter, is it just gibberish, or is it really being realized?

If you are looking for updated information about the location of the COVID-19 vaccine plan, the target number of people being vaccinated, the number of vaccines, the vaccine stage, to the procedures & public sentiment regarding the COVID-19 Vaccination, you are reading the right article. 

Location of the COVID-19 Vaccine Plan

According to the Final Decree of the Director General for Vaccination for COVID-19, it was stated that the location of the COVID-19 vaccine plan would be implemented in all public health service facilities, starting from the Central Government, Provincial Regions, Regencies / Municipalities, or private clinics owned by the public / private sector, which of course have meet the requirements, including:

1. Puskesmas and Puskesmas Support
2. Private Clinic / Private
3. Hospital
4. Port Health Service Unit, Port Health Office or abbreviated as KKP

Procedure for Implementation of COVID-19 Vaccination

All public health facilities that are implementing the COVID-19 vaccination program must meet the following criteria:

1. Have medical personnel for the implementation of COVID-19 vaccination
2. Have cold chain facilities according to the type / type of COVID-19 vaccine to be used and in accordance with the prevailing laws and regulations in Indonesia
3. Have an operational permit that has been stipulated by the Minister of Health based on the prevailing laws and regulations in Indonesia

Target Vaccinated People & COVID-19 Vaccine Stage

The Indonesian Minister of Health, Budi Gunadi Sadikin, outlined the plan for the injection of the COVID-19 vaccine with targets and stages that are divided into 2 stages, namely:

1. First Stage January-April 2021

Target people getting vaccinated:

• 1.3 million health workers
• 17.4 million public servants.

Health workers / medical personnel are the top priority, this also applies in other countries. This is done because medical personnel are part of the front line to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. Budi Gunadi ensures that in the future, the vaccine that will be injected to all medical personnel in 34 provinces spread across Indonesia has passed clinical trials and received an EUA certificate from the BPOM. He added that the Indonesian Ministry of Health has collaborated and collaborated with BPOM and has gained authority in China, Turkey and Brazil.

2. Second Stage April 2021 – March 2022

Target people getting vaccinated:

• 63.9 million vulnerable people
• 77.4 million people according to a cluster approach 

Number of Vaccines

President of Indonesia, Ir. Joko Widodo, said one of the main tasks of the Indonesian Health Minister, Budi Gunadi Sadikin, is to speed up the timing of the COVID-19 vaccination.

This is an attempt to break the main link that causes the transmission of COVID-19 in Indonesia. He, Budi Gunadi Sadikin has also moved quickly to coordinate with companies providing COVID-19 vaccines, through 5 channels, namely: among them the best are Novavax, Sinovac, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and COVAX / GAVI.

1. Novavax vaccine is shipped from the United States (United State)
2. Pfizer vaccine is shipped from the United States (United State)
3. Sinovac vaccine comes from a vaccine from China (China)
4. AstraZeneca vaccine is shipped from the UK
5. The COVAX / GAVI vaccine is a Gavi vaccine alliance project which has received support from the United Nations Organization for World Health Issues (WHO) and the Innovation Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness (CEPI).

Head of Communication and Community Service Bureau, drg. Widyawati, MKM said that of the five vaccine procurement routes, it is estimated that the number will reach 400 million doses with details:

1. 100 million doses of the Sinovac vaccine
2. 100 million doses of the Novavax vaccine
3. 100 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine,
4. 100 million doses of Pfizer vaccine.

In fact, efforts will continue to be added to this amount. To achieve herd immunity, it is estimated that 468.8 million doses of vaccine will be needed for 181.5 million people for all Indonesians.

Public Sentiment on COVID-19 Vaccination

During the period of September 2020, the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia conducted a joint survey with WHO, ITAGI and UNICEF on more than 115,000 respondents in 34 provinces spread across Indonesia to measure the pros and cons of society against the COVID-19 vaccination program.

The following are the results of the survey on the acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccination program:

• More than 70% of the Indonesian people have received and are aware of the appeal about the national vaccination program in an effort to reduce the rate of COVID-19 cases.
• 65% are willing if the COVID-19 vaccine has been provided by the government
• 27% were unsure
• 8% of the population refused
• West Sumatra and Aceh Provinces are the recipient provinces with the lowest percentage, which is below 50%
• West Papua Province has a revenue percentage of 74%
• The Nusa Tenggara Islands have a revenue percentage of 70%
• People with health insurance have an acceptance rate of 66% -70%
• People without health insurance have an acceptance rate of (55%).

Meanwhile, the results of the rejection / cons survey from the acceptance survey of the COVID-19 vaccination program are as follows:

• 30% of people reject vaccines because they doubt their safety
• 22% of people reject the vaccine because they are not sure that it will be effective
• 13% of people reject vaccines because they don’t believe in vaccines
• 12% of people refuse vaccines for fear of side effects
• 8% of people refuse vaccines for religious reasons
• 15% of people refuse vaccines for other reasons.

What is the Government Policy for Vaccine Refusal

There are many ways that the government has taken to refuse vaccines by some people in Indonesia. First and foremost to remember is that they refuse or hesitate because they don’t know how effective the COVID-19 vaccine is for them.

Therefore, policies through the community empowerment approach will be very effective to implement. The following are some of the policies undertaken by the government:

1. Conduct regular and structured house-to-house community visits
2. Providing facilities at community meetings / community groups (such as the PKK community, youth community, religious groups, etc.)
3. Make use of community gathering places in the community. Starting from schools, mosques, markets, etc. to spread misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine
4. Identifying houses between 18-59 years of age who have not been vaccinated
5. Recruit community leaders, religious and cultural figures to accompany cadres on door-to-door visits to provide valid and credible information so as to dispel doubts, fears and other negative rumors about the COVID-19 vaccine.

As a good citizen, it would be great if all of us participate in the COVID-19 vaccination program. Let’s fight the pandemic by participating yourself in the vaccination program!