Minister of Health: 120 Thousand Catastrophic Patients Have Left PBI, Hospitals Are Asked to Continue to Provide Services

The atmosphere of the BPJS office (ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin revealed that around 120 thousand participants of the BPJS Health Fee Assistance (PBI) had left the membership due to changes in districts or welfare groups. He emphasized that health services should not be stopped, especially for patients with catastrophic diseases that require continuous therapy.

"If treatment is stopped for a day, a week, or a month, the consequences can be life-threatening," Budi said in a meeting with Commission IX of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Wednesday (11/2/2026).

Based on data from the Ministry of Health and BPJS Kesehatan, of the total 120 thousand participants, around 20 thousand are dialysis patients. The rest are patients with severe diseases such as stroke, heart disease, cancer undergoing chemotherapy or radiotherapy, and thalassemic patients who regularly undergo blood transfusions.

Budi said the government and the DPR had agreed to reactivate PBI membership through a Ministry of Social Affairs Decree (SK Kemensos). This step was taken so that patients could still access health services with state-funded financing.

In addition, the Ministry of Health has also sent a letter to all hospitals to ensure that patients who have left PBI due to changes in the district still receive services.

According to Budi, the additional cost for PBI reactivation is relatively small compared to the risks posed if the service is stopped. With a PBI fee of around Rp. 42 thousand per person per month, the reactivation of 120 thousand participants is estimated to require a budget of around Rp. 5 billion per month.

"The principle is clear, we don't want services for high-risk patients to stop even if it's just one day," he said.