The Indonesian government has so far carried out Covid-19 vaccinations based on age categories, for children aged 6-11 years, 12-17 years, adults aged 18 years and above, and elderly people.
The Southeast Asian country has seen a spike in cases of acute kidney injury since August, with the deaths of at least 199 people, mostly children, prompting a probe and ban on some liquid medicine sales. The class action lawsuit targets the ministry of health, the country's food and drug agency and seven companies implicated in selling syrups containing excessive amounts of two compounds used in industrial products such as antifreeze.
Official say that polio immunisation rates in the conservative province are well behind the rest of the country, with efforts hampered by widespread disinformation the vaccine is incompatible with religious beliefs, among other things. The government has also been prioritising COVID-19 vaccinations since they became available.
Tests found most of the deaths were caused by syrups containing excessive amounts of ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol, two compounds used in industrial products such as antifreeze.
The decision comes after Indonesia temporarily banned sales of some syrup-based medications and identified the presence in some products of ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol as possible factors in AKI deaths, most of which were of children under five.
Authorities have temporarily banned sales of some syrup-based medications and identified the presence in some products of ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol as possible factors in the deaths of 141 children, most of which were under five.
The deaths were among a total of 241 cases in 22 provinces, Budi Gunadi Sadikin said, adding that most patients were children under the age of five.
Gambia's government is also investigating child AKI deaths linked to paracetamol syrups after 70 fatalities there. The syrups were made by New Delhi-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals Ltd, which India said it is investigating.
The ban comes as the Southeast Asian country's health authorities probe an unexplained rise since January in the number of children's deaths from acute kidney injury (AKI).
Health ministry official Siti Nadia Tarmizi said the ministry had identified 189 cases of AKI among Indonesian children, most aged under five years old, with 74 fatalities recorded since January.
"To provide protection to the public, BPOM has set a requirement at the time of registration that all medicinal syrup products for children and adults are not allowed to use diethylene glycol (DEG) and ethylene glycol (EG)," the regulator said in a statement
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