Australians travelling to Bali will be required to complete a new health declaration form amid public health concerns over the spread of Mpox in Indonesia.
Travelers must complete an electronic self-declaration form, the SatuSehat Health Pass, to enter the country.
The Indonesian government introduced the measure to control the spread of the contagious virus just weeks after it declared a public health emergency.
“All passengers and aircraft personnel travelling from abroad must complete this health form. By declaring your health status and travel history, you are helping to make your travel in Indonesia safer,” the health form website reads.
Indonesian Air Transport Director General Maria Kristi Endah Murni said the rule applies to all foreign travelers, including flight crew.
“Every foreign traveler flying to Indonesia must complete an electronic self-declaration form called SatuSehat Health Pass, as a guide for international airport operators to prevent and manage Mpox transmission at airports,” he said, according to Indonesia’s Antara news agency.
The declaration form must be completed online before passengers check in for their flight.
It is understood that travellers will be given a barcode containing their health and travel history, which will be scanned by Indonesian authorities upon arrival.
Australians travelling to Bali should remember to complete the online health declaration form before entering Indonesia
The Indonesian government has introduced the measure to control the spread of the contagious virus just weeks after a public health emergency was declared.
If travelers develop symptoms of Mpox, they may be referred to a hospital for treatment.
Bali airport’s biosecurity teams have also reportedly introduced thermal imaging cameras in the arrivals terminal to detect passengers with high temperatures.
Travelers planning to visit Indonesia can fill out the form in the app or online.
Indonesia is battling a recent surge in Mpox cases.
Additional tracing measures taken after Indonesia reported 80 cases of Mpox in the past year
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (above) said recent developments involving Mpox were “very worrying”
There have been more than 80 confirmed cases of Mpox in the Southeast Asian nation in the past year.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared Mpox a public health emergency of international concern on August 14.
The new strain of Mpox is believed to have emerged in the Democratic Republic of Congo and may have evolved more quickly than scientists expected.
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the emergence of a new subtype of Mpox and its rapid spread in the Democratic Republic of Congo was “very worrying”.
“It is clear that a coordinated international response is needed to stop these outbreaks and save lives,” he said.
According to ABC, more than 15,000 cases and 537 deaths have been detected in the past year, and the virus mainly affects children.
Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, has been a public health problem in parts of Africa since the 1970s.
However, the virus gained global attention as cases rose internationally in 2022, prompting the World Health Organization to declare a global health emergency that lasted 10 months.
Mpox can be transmitted through close contact with an infected animal or person and through contact with contaminated materials, including clothing.
The virus can cause rashes and skin lesions, with flu-like symptoms such as fever, sore throat and headaches.
Most people who get Mpox recover within a month. However, in immunocompromised people, pregnant women, and young people, it can cause severe illness.
