The Indonesian Government would prioritize the use of AstraZeneca vaccine as booster dose in the first quarter of 2022, an official of the Health Ministry said.

“For the first quarter of 2022, booster vaccine allocation will prioritize AstraZeneca vaccine considering its ample supply,” the ministry’s spokesperson for COVID-19 vaccination, Siti Nadia Tarmidzi, said here on Sunday.

AstraZeneca vaccine can be administered with an interval of eight weeks after the full-dose primary vaccination.

The booster vaccination could be conducted simultaneously in all districts/cities regardless the achievement of 70 percent vaccination target and 60 percent of first dose vaccination for the elderly.

Those who will receive the booster vaccine are required to show their identity card numbers or PeduliLindungi application, 18 years old or above, already have full-dose primary vaccination at least six months before the booster vaccination.

People who received Sinovac as primary vaccine would get half dose of AstraZeneca (0.25 ml) or half dose of Pfizer (0.15 ml) as booster vaccine while those who received AstraZeneca as primary vaccine would get half dose of Moderna (0.25 ml), half dose of Pfizer (0.15 ml), or full dose of AstraZeneca (0.5 ml) as booster vaccine.

“These (vaccine cocktail) has been studied by health experts such as the Indonesian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ITAGI), the Drug and Food Monitoring Agency (BPOM) as well as academics,” she said.

A study found that a third booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine made by AstraZeneca, Pfizer-BioNTech, or Johnson & Johnson increases antibody levels significantly in those who have previously received two doses of Sinovac shot.

Source: Antara News