New strain, new measures

THE Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, the country’s main port of entry by air, is mandating all inbound travellers to register their details with the SatuSehat electronic health pass as a preventive measure against a new, more virulent strain of mpox.

The recent spread of clade Ib mpox across West and Central Africa prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare the virus a public health emergency of international concern in mid-August.

The airport’s communication and legal senior branch manager, M. Holik Muardi, said all international passengers entering Indonesia must complete the SatuSehat self-declaration form prior to departure.

“This policy is implemented for arrivals from all countries without exception and has been effective since Aug 29,” Holik said yesterday, as quoted by Antara News.

The SatuSehat health pass requires the personal information of travellers, including their full name, mobile phone number, date and port of arrival, flight and seat number, as well as other details of their planned journey, including country of departure, transit countries and any countries they have visited up to 21 days before departing for Indonesia.

Once the completed form is submitted, the electronic system generates a barcode containing the traveller’s health and travel history for airport officers to scan upon their arrival. The app will also provide a colour coded health risk rating of green, yellow and red to all travellers.

In addition to registering their details with SatuSehat, airport authorities are urging all travelers to practice good hygiene in the airport to prevent the spread of mpox.

The airport’s measures are part of a broader government strategy to prevent the spread of clade Ib, a new, more virulent strain of mpox that has a case fatality rate (CFR) of up to 10%.

The clade II lineage that caused the previous global outbreak of mpox in 2022 has a CFR of less than one percent.

While most of Asia, including Indonesia, has dealt primarily with clade II infections, the recent emergence of clade Ib mpox has raised significant concern.

Indonesia has reported 88 mpox cases over the past two years until Aug 17, including 87 patients who have recovered from the disease, with the majority of infections linked to the clade IIb variant.

Most recently, the West Jakarta Health Agency reported three suspected cases of mpox.

The Health Ministry is currently preparing 4,450 doses of mpox vaccines at two doses each for 2,250 people, around 3.5 times more recipients than last year’s target of 495. — The Jakarta Post/ANN