Indonesia has invited the private sector to build more hospitals and reserve 25% of the available beds for the poor in an attempt to address a rise in chronic diseases in the nation.
Indonesian health minister Endang Sedyaningsih said that the government aim is for patients who are hospitalised in class-3 facilities will not have to pay.
The plan is to cover basic hospital medical services nationwide, to ensure Indonesians who live in poverty get free hospital treatment. It is estimated to cost IDR10 trillion ($1.15bn).
"They will be covered by either the central government or the provincial government," Sedyaningsih said.
Due to the governmental budget constraints the plan will be implemented in stages.
Under Indonesia's 2011 budget, the Health Ministry has allocated IDR26.2tn ($2.9bn), an increase of 10% from the previous year.
