Health minister proposes automatic reactivation for 120,000 chronically ill PBI JKN members

Jakarta, Thekabarnews.com—Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin indicated that some 120,000 persons with long-term, life-threatening illnesses were no longer eligible for the Recipients of Contribution Assistance (PBI) element of the National Health Insurance (JKN) program.

Budi spoke at a leadership meeting at the DPR/MPR RI offices in Central Jakarta, Monday, February 9. He agreed that it was necessary to make sure that people who are weak can still access medical care. Furthermore, he advised that the government act right now.

“To address the needs of public health care, we advise that the Social Ministry Affairs issue a decree to automatically reactivate the 120,000 PBI JKN consumers for catastrophic services over the next three months,” Budi remarked.

The minister extensively discussed the health issues that the affected individuals faced. His numbers show that the group contains 12,262 people with kidney disease, 16,804 people with cancer, and 63,119 people with heart disease. 

There were also 26,224 people on the list who experienced strokes. In addition, 1,276 people have liver cirrhosis, 114 people have hemophilia, and 673 people have thalassemia.

These are terrible diseases that need long-term, often costly medical care like chemotherapy, dialysis, heart surgery, and other long-term treatments.

The PBI JKN program gives money to low-income and vulnerable people so they can pay for health insurance. Consequently, any interruption in coverage could significantly impact patients who require ongoing care.

Budi made it clear that the proposed automatic reactivation would only be a temporary fix. This measure would be in effect while the government worked with the Ministry of Social Affairs to confirm it.

Experts believe that the move highlights how hard it is to establish a compromise between making sure that high-risk patients can always access medical care. At the same time, it is also important to make sure that administrative verification systems are always in place.

The administration is under a lot of pressure to make sure that patients with life-threatening conditions do not miss out on crucial medical care. This pressure continues while conversations are going on in Parliament.