UNAIR NEWS – Various problems of National Health Insurance (JKN) program are getting more attention from the public nowadays. One of the issues often discussed amid Covid-10 pandemic is the JKN premiums’ hike. After being called off for some time, the administration finally decided to carry on setting the new tariff as stated in Presidential Regulation Number 64 of 2020.
In a discussion called “Indonesia Bagian Berdiskusi” held by Student Executive Board (BEM) Faculty of Public Health (FKM) UNAIR on Sunday, June 7, 2020, Dr. Djazuly Chalidyanto, S.KM., M.A.R.S., conveyed that the rising price was useful for the sustainability of the program. He said that a significant step is needed so JKN program could go on and one of the ways is by rising the premiums of JKN.
“The longer the premium rise being called off, the bigger the deficit, so a significant measure is needed for sustainability of the program. The fastest way is indeed by raising the premiums,” he said via zoom.
According to USAID Indonesia, there are several conditions to achieve sustainability. From the aspect of income, the first requirement is monthly automatic income rising along with economic growth, so healthcare BPJS income must also be in line with economic growth. The second requirement is related to governance that must be done properly, cleanly, and transparently, in this case is the governance of healthcare BPJS.
In addition, he also said that the increase in fees had nothing to do with the COVID-19 pandemic. He revealed, the increase in fees was in accordance with existing regulations, whereby the amount of JKN fees could be reviewed at least every two years to adjust to the development needs.
“The raised premium has nothing to do with the condition of COVID-19 pandemic, the moment alone is accidental,” he said.
Dr. Djazuly emphasized that JKN contributions are important because basically the benefits of these contributions will be felt by the community itself. “Healthcare costs are high, no matter how much we save for healthcare costs, it would not be enough, therefore one of the solutions that can be done is becoming an insurance participant or JKN participant,” he said. (*)
Author: Dita Aulia Rahma
Editor: Khefti Al Mawalia
