Covid surge pushes Indonesia’s health system to the brink Gemma Holliani Cahya in Jakarta
Hospitals across the Indonesian island of Java are running out of oxygen, medicines, beds and even staff as a sharp rise in Covid cases pushes the country’s health system to the brink.
Indonesia, which is facing one of the worst outbreaks in Asia, announced 31,189 new cases and 728 fatalities on Tuesday, both record highs. The government said it was sourcing supplies of oxygen from Singapore to ease shortages.
Senior minister Luhut Pandjaitan said he feared daily cases could reach as high as 70,000.
“At worst, it [could reach] 60,000 to 70,000 cases per day, but I hope that doesn’t happen because our friends from police, military have done quite a good insulation,” he said.
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JAKARTA: Indonesia expanded nationwide coronavirus curbs yesterday to battle its deadliest Covid-19 wave yet as the death toll rocketed.
The country reported 34,379 infections and 1,040 deaths - both records - yesterday with fatalities up nearly six-fold from the daily number at the end of May.
The new restrictions would apply to dozens of cities and extend from Sumatra island in the west to easternmost Papua as the highly infectious Delta variant rips across the archipelago after battering Java. Cases are also rising in other regions and we need to pay attention to the availability of hospitals (there), said Senior Minister Airlangga Hartarto, adding that the government has decided to extend curbs until July 20.
Lead Sinovac vaccine scientist in Indonesia dies of suspected Covid-19 Reuters
The lead scientist on China s Sinovac vaccine trials in Indonesia died of suspected Covid-19 on Wednesday, Indonesian media said.
The death of Novilia Sjafri Bachtiar comes as fatalities from the coronavirus reach record highs in Indonesia, one of the countries where the Sinovac vaccine has been most widely used.
Kumparan news service said Novilia had died of the coronavirus. Sindonews quoted an official of state-owned pharmaceuticals company BioFarma as saying she had been buried according to Covid-19 protocols.
State enterprises minister Erick Thohir posted a message on Instagram mourning her huge loss at BioFarma, which is making the vaccine. He did not give the cause of her death.
The New Paper
Indonesia boosts health funds, reports record day of deaths and cases
Workers unloading oxygen tanks at an emergency oxygen station in Jakarta, to supply to anyone who needs it during home isolation. PHOTO: AFP
Jul 06, 2021 06:00 am
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JAKARTA: Indonesia s government yesterday agreed to boost its coronavirus healthcare budget and introduce telemedicine services to non-critical patients, in an effort to reduce pressure on a health system choked by days of record Covid-19 cases.
Indonesia is battling one of Asia s worst coronavirus epidemics, fuelled by the highly contagious Delta variant first identified in India.
Authorities yesterday reported 558 deaths, a second day of record fatalities, and 29,745 infections, the 10th day of record cases in the past 15 days.
Indonesia rolls out tougher curbs as coronavirus cases skyrocket arabnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from arabnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.