Month: September 2021

Some 1,055 COVID-19 positive patients are still undergoing treatment at the COVID-19 Emergency Hospital at the Kemayoran Athelete’s Village, Central Jakarta.

“All patients confirmed positive (for COVID-19), comprising 489 male and 566 female patients, are being treated at towers Four, Five, Six, and Seven,” Head of Information of the Joint Regional Military Command Marine Colonel Aris Mudian noted in a statement here on Wednesday.

Mudian pointed out that the number of patients declined by 67 as compared to 1,122 inpatients recorded earlier. In total, 124,221 COVID-19 patients recovered at the COVID-19 Emergency Hospital at the Athlete’s Village.

Some 1,020 patients were referred to other hospitals, while 594 people succumbed to the disease. The recapitulation of patients in towers Four, Five, Six, and Seven was conducted from March 23, 2020, until September 1, 2021, at 8:00 a.m. local time. A total of 126,890 patients were registered at the COVID-19 Emergency Hospital at the Kemayoran Athelete’s Village, with 125,835 outpatients recorded during that time period.

Mudian also drew attention to the condition of COVID-19 patients at the Pademangan Athlete Village.

Some 4,977 inpatients, comprising 2,371 male patients and 2,606 female patients, were recorded at the Pademangan Athlete Village. The patients are being treated in towers Eight, Nine, and 10. Currently, 396 infected patients are undergoing treatment at the Galang Islands Hospital for Infectious Disease.

From April 12, 2020, to September 1, 2021, the Galang Islands Hospital for Infectious Disease recorded a total of 15,938 patients, with 15,568 outpatients comprising 42 patients referred to other hospitals, 8,229 patients that made a recovery, and 7,297 patients having completed treatment.

This is one of the several good tidings of the pandemic situation. Several regions have currently downgraded the level of community activities restriction policy on account of a smaller number of people contracting COVID-19. The situation has returned to normal to some extent now, as some leeway, such as limited face-to-face learning and mall reopenings, were observed.

Source: Antara News

Head of West Manggarai District Edistasius Endi praised the collaboration by the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy to administer four thousand doses of vaccine to the tourism community and local residents in Labuan Bajo.

“It is such an extraordinary step by the ministry to take part in holding the vaccination program for the people of Labuan Bajo in dealing with the impacts of being exposed to COVID-19,” Endi stated at the opening of the Vaccination Center in Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai District, East Nusa Tenggara Province, Wednesday.

Endi expressed gratitude that the Ministry had collaborated with Danone Indonesia and the Labuan Bajo Flores Authority Body (BPOLBF) to express their concern and responsibility for the achievements of COVID-19 vaccination in areas being developed by the government as super-priority tourism areas. The district head remarked that four thousand doses of vaccine over a span of four days will help the local governments in accelerating the vaccination program.

Endi later explained that expediting vaccination will attract tourists to visit Labuan Bajo, thereby helping the creative economy in the area to bounce back.

He targeted to vaccinate 100 percent of his people in November. However, if more parties help accelerate vaccination in this super-premium tourism area, he assessed that the target will be met before November 2021. He is optimistic that by expediting vaccination, villages in the remote areas of his administration would also be covered.

“Hence, it is not only the residents of Labuan Bajo that receive the vaccine but also all residents of West Manggarai,” Endi stated.

Head of the West Manggarai District Health Service, Paulus Mami, conveyed that vaccination services through online registration conducted at the Vaccination Center had helped officers to ensure the implementation of health protocols.

“If people register online like this, then they already know about the schedule. Hence, they know what time to come, and we can avoid crowding,” Mami remarked.

Mami also noted that 20 vaccinators had been ready at the Vaccination Center. Some 50 thousand people out of the total target of 250 thousand people are targeted to be vaccinated in West Manggarai.

Source: Antara News

President Joko Widodo, in a video that later went viral, visited a pharmacy in Bogor, West Java on July 23, 2021 to buy oseltamivir and other COVID-19 medicines only to be told they were not available.

He was told that the medicines were not available as the pharmacy had not received supplies of the anti-virus drugs for a long time.

In July this year, Indonesia saw a record jump in COVID-19 cases due to the spread of the Delta variant in Java and Bali in particular.

The country’s daily COVID-19 cases hit a record of 56,757 on July 15, 2021, while the daily deaths touched 2,069 on July 27, 2021.

The grave situation forced the government to enforce strict people’s movement restrictions (PPKM), or semi lockdowns, as the Widodo administration avoided using the term ‘lockdown’ in handling the pandemic.

The drastic COVID-19 spike overwhelmed the nation. Hospitals became overloaded with COVID-19 patients and the demand for drugs and medical oxygen jumped significantly, forcing the country to import them in larger quantities and accept the helping hand offered by other countries.

More worryingly, Indonesia barely produced three percent of medicines and medical equipment, while the remaining 97 percent were imported, particularly raw materials, according to Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin.

“For medicines, only three percent are produced domestically. We still import 97 percent (of them), since out of the 1,809 drug items in the e-catalog, only 56 drug items are produced domestically,” the minister stated at a virtual press conference held to discuss efforts to bolster the use of domestically made medical equipment products.

Out of the 10 major medicinal raw materials, only two are produced domestically, specifically Clopidogrel and Paracetamol, while the rest are still imported, the minister informed. Similarly, most of the country’s medical devices are imported, he added. He then expressed concern over the high percentage of imports in the procurement of medical equipment, medicines, and raw materials for medicines.

“We view it from the health resilience system. Hence, we want to ensure that all raw materials for medicines and medical devices can be produced domestically to reduce our dependence on other countries. Especially during a pandemic such as this, the system of our health resilience should be strong,” he emphasized.

The ministry has prepared several measures to increase the absorption of domestic medical devices, including by ensuring regulations in favor of domestic products; immediately calculating the Domestic Component Level (TKDN) of medical equipment and making TKDN as the main requirement in the e-catalog; and conducting promotions, particularly to prioritize domestic purchases, Sadikin said.

In the long term, the ministry will build resource competencies to facilitate technology transfer and build a better research ecosystem, he affirmed.

In the short term, the ministry will alter 5,462 imported medical devices (79 types of medical devices) to similar medical devices that can be produced domestically.

“Of the (total) 40,243 items, some 5,462 items have already been manufactured domestically. Hence, the government’s procurement is only allowed for the purchase of medical devices that have been produced domestically, at the amount of around Rp6.5 trillion,” the minister remarked.

Last year, the transaction value of Indonesia’s health sector reached Rp490 trillion. The majority of the spending was used to pay for health services provided by doctors and the use of health devices, Sadikin said on August 30, 2021.

It would be a shame if this business potential is not tapped through the creation of manufacturing capacity or by the domestic industry, especially in the health sector, he added. Within the last five years, since President Joko Widodo issued his instruction regarding domestic health device production, the Health Ministry has issued 9,400 circulation permits for domestic health products, Sadikin disclosed.

“I have personally witnessed that, during the pandemic, several primary health devices can be produced domestically. Many personal protection device factories are starting to produce (their products) locally,” he added.

The demand for health devices should be seen as an opportunity for the health device industry to become more aggressive in building domestic production capacity, the minister said.

“Because it is through this that Indonesia’s economy will move and Indonesia will be a bigger, stronger nation,” Sadikin asserted.

The minister also said he would ensure that the Health Ministry implements an affirmative policy toward domestic health device producers.

Meanwhile, the Directorate General of Customs and Excise at the Ministry of Finance recorded the realization of fiscal incentives from medical equipment imports at Rp799 billion for the March 2020-July 2021 period.

“The value of fiscal incentives given had totaled Rp799 billion of the value of imported goods of Rp4 trillion,” the Ministry of Finance noted in an official statement on August 19, 2021.

The types of medical equipment imported included PCR reagents, ventilators, personal protective equipment (PPE), medicines, In Vitro machines (lab tests), as well as surgical, non-surgical, and N95 masks.

The minister explained that customs incentives were offered for the PCR test kits from March 2020 until now as they are expected to fulfill testing needs at low prices.

However, the PCR test cost in Indonesia was considered so high that the aviation industry complained. The controversy over PCR costs forced President Widodo to order reduction in PCR test costs.

Other medical items related to the PCR swab testing kits that were also given customs incentives included PCR test reagents, swabs, Virus Transport Media (VTM), and In Vitro diagnostic equipment.

Since July 2021, the government has also provided tax exemption on imports of oxygen, oxygen concentrators, oxygen generators, oxygen cylinders, and oxygen regulators, which were in very high demand.

In the meantime, Indonesia is also 100-percent depending on imported vaccines to fight COVID-19, as indigenous vaccines are currently in the development process and are expected to be ready by the middle of next year.

The government has allocated a budget of Rp47 trillion for COVID-19 vaccine imports this year, while Rp58 trillion has also been allotted for the entire vaccination program implementation throughout the country, according to Deputy Finance Minister Suahasil Nazara.

Meanwhile, House of Representatives (DPR) Deputy Speaker Rachmat Gobel has urged the government to prioritize the development of the domestic health industry to enable Indonesia to become independent and sovereign in its health sector.

“Based on the current COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen that we are very dependent on imports for medicines, vaccines, and health equipment,” he said in a statement released on August 17, 2021, when the country celebrated its 76th Independence Day.

To this end, it is time that the government begins to develop the indigenous medicine, vaccine, and health equipment industry, he added. “Provide incentives, conduct protection, and facilitate domestic medicine, vaccine, and health equipment industry,” Gobel asserted.

Secondly, dependency on imported medicines, vaccines, and health equipment has resulted in expensive pricing and depleted the foreign exchange, in addition to causing scarcity of medical supplies when Indonesia needs them the most, he added.

This has been one of the factors behind the high death rate, he elaborated.

The third point is related to the Proud of Indonesian Product that should not just become an empty slogan, Gobel remarked.

The President has established regulations and policies regarding local content requirement (TKDN), he noted. However, they require field supervision, especially in state spending, state-owned enterprises spending, and government projects, he opined.

The fourth point is related to the importance of strengthening the domestic health industry so that Indonesia can transform from a consumer nation into a producer nation, he added.

“This will bring us pride and dignity. It will also make use of Indonesia’s human resources as well improve their quality. Building an industry is not just about the workforce but also the capability to create a product,” Gobel remarked.

In addition to these steps, he suggested that the government encourage more investment in the health industry.

A similar concern was also voiced by the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR RI) Speaker Bambang Soesatyo, who reminded the nation that it must address its dependency on imports of food and medicines as well as medical equipment.

“When it comes to freedom, it has to be admitted that the level of Indonesia’s dependence on imported products remains high,” he noted during a public dialog entitled ‘Reflecting 76 years of Indonesia Independence: Are We Free?’ that was held virtually on August 21, 2021.

The MPR speaker made the statement while referring to data released by Statistics Indonesia (BPS) that indicated Indonesia imported food worth up to Rp88.21 trillion during the first half of 2021.

The speaker further said the level of the nation’s dependence on imported health products had reached 90 percent.

Problems in handling the COVID-19 pandemic should serve as a wake up call for Indonesia to strive for self-reliance in medicines and medical equipment products. And this time, the nation must ensure plans for such self-reliance do not remain on paper.

Source: Antara News

Indonesia has been fighting on two fronts since last year: the global coronavirus pandemic that has severely affected the nation’s public health and economy and the continued threat of domestic and transnational drug rings.

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNDOC), the pandemic has even made online sales of illicit drugs thrive.

It is the government’s primary duty to save Indonesian citizens from both the coronavirus and trade of illicit drugs.

To win the nation’s fight against COVID-19, the government has intensified its vaccination program to achieve herd immunity.

At the same time, it has been appealing to the public to keep complying with health protocols and enforced public activity restrictions since July 3, 2021.

In the midst of the government’s battle against the coronavirus that has infected more than four million Indonesians and caused 132,491 deaths, drug dealers have continued their trafficking operations.

Drug traffickers consider Indonesia an attractive market owing to its vast population, huge number of drug users, and the high value of illicit drug trade.

Drug trade in Indonesia is reportedly valued at nearly Rp66 trillion while, according to the results of a recent survey, the total number of drug users in the country is recorded at at least 3.4 million. The survey the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) and Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) conducted has also shown that 180 out of every 10 thousand Indonesians, aged between 15 and 64, have been pushed into drug addiction.

The BNN-LIPI survey seems to be accurate as drug offenders apprehended by police have often belonged to that age group.

On August 13, 2021, for instance, the North Sumatra police nabbed a 21-year-old drug courier while he was trying to smuggle 13 kg of crystal methamphetamine to Jakarta from East Aceh district.

The suspect, identified as MA, was arrested on a Medan-Banda Aceh road section in Tanjung Pura sub-district, Langkat district, North Sumatra police spokesperson, Senior Commissioner Hadi Wahyudi, informed.

The 21-year-old suspect told investigators that the crystal meth packages belonged to a resident of Aceh province, identified as Putra, Wahyudi said in a statement.

The suspect, who resides in Lueng Puet village, Madat sub-district, East Aceh district, had concealed the drug packages in two separate bags.

MA confessed that Putra had offered to pay him Rp103 million for transporting the package through the Trans-Sumatra highway to Jakarta, Wahyudi said, adding that the police are still investigating the case. In South Kalimantan province, local police officers nabbed a 40-year-old resident of Banjarmasin city for drug possession on August 23, 2021.

The suspect, identified by his initials AM, was jobless, according to head of the South Kalimantan Police’s Narcotics Unit, Adjunct Senior Commissioner Niko Irawan.

AM was apprehended at his home with 409.31 grams of crystal methamphetamine that he planned to sell to local drug users, he said.

In Makassar, the capital of South Sulawesi province, local cops seized 35 kilograms of crystal meth and 30 thousand ecstasy pills from a 28-year-old man at a hotel in Makassar City in the early hours of August 28, 2021.

The man, identified by his initials FTR, was placed in police custody, while the evidence of the crime was examined at the police’s forensic laboratory center, according to the South Sulawesi police.

On August 26, 2021, South Sulawesi police arrested two suspected drug couriers at a hotel in Makassar and seized nearly 40 kg of crystal meth and four thousand ecstasy pills.

The suspects were identified by their initials as SYF (37), a resident of South Kalimantan province, and ABJ (24), a resident of Tallo sub-district in Makassar, according to South Sulawesi Police spokesperson Senior Commissioner E. Zulpan.

South Sulawesi police investigators are continuing to probe the two drug cases to find whether they are linked as part of efforts to uncover the suspects’ drug ring, he stated. The threat of drug rings in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic is not just Indonesia’s problem. Instead, it has become a global issue.

“Drugs cost lives,” said Ghada Fathi Waly, executive director of UNDOC.

In her foreword to the UNODC’s booklet titled COVID-19 and Drugs: Impact Outlook (2021), she said that almost half a million people died of drug use in 2019 alone.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, “access to drugs has also become simpler than ever with online sales, and major drug markets on the dark web are now worth some $315 million annually”, she warned.

The pandemic may have also contributed to the increase in “contactless drug transactions, such as through the mail”, Waly said.

This indeed will pose a serious challenge to all nations, particularly Indonesia, which both domestic and transnational drug traffickers have continued to perceive as a big market.

Source: Antara News

The National COVID-19 Handling Task Force has formed the Public Facilities 3M (Wearing Masks, Maintaining Distance, and Washing Hands) Health Protocols Task Force amid the re-opening of public facilities in several regions.

The establishment of the new task force is in accordance with Circular Letter Number 19/2021 on the establishment and optimization of a 3M Health Protocols Task Force for public facilities to handle the COVID-19 pandemic, an official said.

“The task force has been formed to support the establishment of a productive community which is safe from COVID-19,” spokesperson for the National COVID-19 Handling Task Force, Wiku Adisasmito, said in a written statement received here on Tuesday.

There is risk of COVID-19 infection everywhere — at home, while traveling, or doing activities outside the house, he noted.

“Hence, it is expected that the activities at the public facilities will also be able to contribute to reducing the risk of transmitting the virus among the community,” he said. The circular letter will be effective starting September 1, 2021 until an undetermined date and will be evaluated further in accordance with the latest developments, he informed.

Furthermore, the health protocols task force is expected to be established in eleven community activity groups — economic and shopping; entertainment and sports; accommodation provision; health service; transportation; work; education; social events; law enforcement activities; energy and environmental events; as well as religious activities, Adisasmito said.

To support the health protocols’ implementation, the newly established task force will involve the public facilities’ managers/officers and management associations, as well as the regional COVID-19 task forces, Behavior Change Ambassadors, or volunteers for carrying out the three functions of prevention, surveillance, and support. The prevention function of the task force will be performed through periodic 3M socialization and the daily application of the health protocols, such as setting different entry and exit points, spraying disinfectants regularly, as well as screening visitors’ health at entrances by checking their temperature, PeduliLindungi app barcode scanning, and asking them to wash hands, Adisasmito said.

Meanwhile, the surveillance function will be conducted by monitoring the health protocols’ implementation among officers, managers, workers, traders, and visitors at public facilities and giving necessary reprimands, he added.

In addition, sanctions will be imposed by regional governments and management associations of public facilities on health protocol violators, he said adding, tiered sanctions will apply for repeat violators. Furthermore, performance monitoring and evaluation of the health protocols task force will be carried out by the regional COVID-19 task forces, while training to the task force will be provided by the regional military and police officers, he said.

“Hence, in monitoring and evaluating the performance of the Health Protocol Task Force, the Regional COVID-19 Task Forces should pay attention to their administrative level and adjust to the conditions of the public facilities,” Adisasmito stated.

Moreover, in carrying out the three functions, the Public Facilities 3M Health Protocols Task Force would also follow the Technical Guidelines for the Establishment and Operation of the Public Facilities 3M Health Protocols Task Force, he informed.

He also said that the funding for the activity would later come from community donations, grants, and the local or central government’s official assistance.

Source: Antara News

PT Adaro Indonesia offered assistance through the provision of 300 oxygen concentrators to 19 hospitals in the regions of Kalimantan and Sumatra to treat COVID-19 patients in need of oxygen.

Chairman of the Adaro Bangun Negeri Foundation Okty Damayanti stated that apart from being distributed to 19 hospitals, the oxygen concentrators were also handed out to 10 Adaro clinics in South Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, and South Sumatra.

“The oxygen concentrators can be used especially for confirmed COVID-19 patients in areas far from access to oxygen suppliers,” Damayanti remarked.

In collaboration with the Satriabudi Dharma Setia Foundation (YSDS), Adaro has ensured that this assistance of oxygen concentrators simplifies the patients’ requirements for oxygen since it is easy to transport to his or her location, does not require complex handling, and does not require refilling.

In addition to distributing oxygen concentrators, YSDS will disseminate information on using them, so that oxygen concentrators can be used optimally. The 300 oxygen concentrators will be distributed in coordination with subsidiaries in South Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan: Adaro Indonesia, SaptaIndra Sejati, and Balangan Coal.

In addition, Adaro logistics, Makmur Sejahtera Wisesa, Tanjung Power Indonesia, Adaro Metcoal Companies, and Mustika Indah Permai are tasked with the distribution in South Sumatra.

One of the hospitals that received the oxygen concentrator assistance was H Abdul Aziz Marabahan Hospital in Barito Kuala District.

The assistance of 10 oxygen concentrators was directly received by the hospital’s Director Dr. Fathurrahman on Tuesday. External Relations Section Head of Adaro Logistics Andrianto Rezka explained that this assistance is a form of the company’s support for hospitals in handling COVID-19 patients.

“Adaro provides support to hospitals to accelerate the handling of COVID-19,” Rezka stated.

Adaro’s support of oxygen concentrators is expected to help patients exposed to the corona virus and in dire need of oxygen.

“This year, the Adaro Group will distribute one thousand oxygen concentrators worth Rp12.6 billion through the Adaro Berjuang program for Indonesia,” he stated. The assistance of oxygen concentrators is expected to reduce the need for large quantities of oxygen cylinders.

Dr Fathurahman also lauded the company for the oxygen concentrator assistance provided.

“Thank you, this assistance is very useful for patients in need,” Fathurrahman remarked.

Furthermore, he expressed hope that the oxygen concentrators would improve the progress in recovery of the patients.

On the same day, Adaro distributed oxygen concentrators in several areas, such as Tanah Laut District, East Barito District, and South Barito District.

Source: Antara News

Indonesia’s airport operator PT Angkasa Pura II (Persero) has enforced travel requirements during community activities restriction (PPKM) level 4, level 3, and level 2 in Java and Bali from August 31 to September 6, 2021.

Corporate Communications Vice President of AP II Yado Yarismano appealed to all airplane passengers to be heedful of the requirements at the origin and destination airports.

“We urge passengers to pay attention to the requirements that apply at the origin and destination airports to ensure a smooth process of departure and arrival at the airports,” Yarismano noted in his statement, Tuesday.

The regulation is in accordance with Instruction of the Minister of Home Affairs Number 38 of 2021 on enforcement of PPKM Level 4, Level 3, and Level 2.

He explained that all airports managed by AP II follow the provisions in accordance with the Minister of Home Affairs Circular Number 38 of 2021 that prospective airplane passengers are required to comply with:

1. Those arriving from outside Java and Bali or passengers departing from Java and Bali to other locations are mandated to show a vaccination card of at least the first dose and a negative PCR result, with samples taken at least 48 hours before departure.

2. Those travelling between cities or districts within Java and Bali must show a negative antigen result, with samples taken 24 hours before departure, and a certificate of the second dose vaccination. In addition, passengers are required to show a negative PCR result, with samples taken 48 hours before departure, if they have only received the first dose of vaccination.

Yarismano explained that AP II airports had also necessitated the PeduliLindungi application to process flight departures.

“Passengers can show a digital vaccination card and digital COVID-19 test results through their PeduliLindungi application to process departures. There is no need to carry paper documents anymore. This can expedite and simplify the departure process as well as improve health protocols, as it also minimizes physical contact at the airport,” Yarismano remarked.

COVID-19 tests must be conducted at laboratories or health facilities that are integrated with the allrecord-tc-19 (New All Record/NAR) application of the Ministry of Health, and the results can be directly sent to the PeduliLindungi account of the prospective airline passengers.

Vaccination cards for prospective airplane passengers are also sent directly to the PeduliLindungi account for the respective passengers.

AP II has also prepared infrastructure, such as a verification machine and QR Reader, to read the QR Code in the PeduliLindungi application, as part of processing departures.

Source: Antara News