Jakarta (ANTARA) – The Indonesian government is set to introduce telemedicine services on Tuesday to tackle difficulties encountered by the public in obtaining COVID-19 medicines, Maritime Affairs and Investment Coordinating Minister’s spokesman, Jodi Mahardi, stated.
“The government will roll out telemedicine services in Jakarta as of Tuesday. The public can undergo COVID-19 swab tests at laboratories in cooperation with the Health Ministry. If they test positive, then the government will deliver medicines to them for free,” Mahardi noted in a written statement released on Tuesday.
Telemedicine, also referred to as telehealth or e-medicine, is the remote delivery of healthcare services, including exams and consultations, over telecommunications infrastructure.
Telemedicine is part of the government’s endeavors to address the inadequacy of COVID-19 drugs, as the country’s COVID-19 caseload has augmented drastically in recent weeks.
Mahardi emphasized that Maritime Affairs and Investment Coordinating Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, as coordinator of the emergency public activity restriction (PPKM), had urged the police to identify problems causal to the dearth of COVID-19 drugs.
National Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo will deploy his men at drug stores to thwart any likely hoarding of COVID-19 drugs that might result in a price hike.
“Many people experiencing a panic attack are also storing drugs although they are not ill. The government also continues to urge pharmaceutical companies to meet the drug requirements,” he remarked. Indonesia recorded the addition of 29,745 confirmed COVID-19 cases on Monday, thereby taking the total count to 2,313,829, according to the COVID-19 Response Task Force.
With 14,416 people recovering from COVID-19 in a single day, the total recovery count since the first infections were reported in the country in March 2020 reached 1,942,690.
With 558 people succumbing to the infection, the COVID-19 death toll rose to 61,140.
The number of active cases, or patients receiving treatment and conducting self-isolation, had reached 309,999. Meanwhile, the number of suspected cases stood at 79,808.
Source: Antara News