Saturday, November 14, 2020 – There has been a Public Lecture on Health Law entitled “Anticipating the COVID-19 Vaccine and Fulfilling Public Rights to Access to Health” which was filled by speakers: Prof. dr. Tjandra Yoga Aditama Sp. P (K), MARS, DTM & H, DTCE. This public lecture was organized by the Center for Health Law and Policy, Faculty of Law, University of Indonesia which took place online through zoom meetings and YouTube live streaming of the Faculty of Law UI. Participants who attended were 296 people consisting of various agencies and professions, ranging from UI students, doctors, teachers / lecturers, government, hospitals, health centers, as well as other agencies or professions.
The event began with an introduction to the Center for Health Law and Policy by Djarot Dimas Andaru, S.H., as the teaching assistant for health law at FHUI and secretary of the Center for Health Law and Policy Indonesia. This introductory session explained the scope, objectives, members, and main programs of the Center for Health Law and Policy, namely the development of health law science and research and community service.
Broadly speaking, the speakers in this public lecture divided the session into three parts, consisting of material about epidemiology, COVID-19, and the COVID-19 vaccine. In the epidemiology session, the resource person explained the dynamics of the global pandemic Coronavirus Disease-2019 (“COVID-19”), which until now has not yet seen a clear solution, especially the cycle of spread, patterns and events that continues to develop. In this session, the participants were very enthusiastic about asking about issues and global conditions related to COVID-19. The issue that is being questioned is the comparison of the effectiveness of the spread of COVID between countries and its correlation with the existing conditions in Indonesia.
During the Vaccine and COVID-19 session, the enthusiasm of the public lecture participants increased. The resource person explained the existence of the COVID-19 vaccine which is a hot issue in the international world. He also explained how vaccines work, which in the context of COVID-19 can provide immunity to populations that have not been infected, so that the chain of spread of COVID-19 can be suppressed quickly. In addition, looking at the background of the resource persons who have been involved in the World of International Health Law, especially at the World Health Organization (WHO), the resource person explained that there was a collaborative effort in the context of development and production to ensure equitable distribution of vaccines to all member countries of the COVAX initiative. Regarding vaccines, many participants questioned the legality, safety, and legal responsibility of vaccines when they can be consumed.
Through this lecture, he also explained in terms of legal responsibility, the problem that might arise is how the responsibility of the state and pharmaceutical companies as vaccine producers for the development and supply of the COVID-19 vaccine, which is a common public goods item that must be available inclusively for all levels of society. Apart from meeting national needs. The race in creating and producing the COVID-19 vaccine must be based on an ethic and understanding of the principle that the provision of the COVID-19 vaccine must also be accompanied by a responsibility to ensure equal access for all levels of society and countries in the world to the vaccine.
Therefore, this lecture is a means for participants to understand the conditions of the global pandemic, especially the issue of the COVID-19 vaccine and Indonesia’s position in fulfilling the right to health, which is Indonesia’s responsibility and challenge.
