Participation reaches 70 million people, how effective is the free health check program to increase public health awareness?

Illustration. (Photo: Unsplash)

JAKARTA - The Free Health Check program held by the Ministry of Health since February 10, 2025 has shown significant achievements.

As of December 29, 2025 at 22.15 WIB, a total of 70,292,151 participants were recorded from a total of 73,128,356 applicants.

The national attendance rate of 96.12 percent is a strong indicator of the high enthusiasm of the public for free health examination services.

The program, which is running in 38 provinces, is supported by 514 regencies/cities, and involves 10,588 health facilities, is designed as part of President Prabowo Subianto's quick win government.

The main focus is to encourage public awareness of the importance of early detection and regular health checks, which have so far often been ignored.

Head of the Communication and Public Information Bureau of the Ministry of Health, Aji Muhawarman, assessed that the achievement reflected a positive change in people's behavior.

"The achievement of more than 70 million participants shows an increase in public awareness of the importance of early detection and regular health checks," Aji said in an official statement.

Quoted from the Indonesian Letter digital information portal, nationwide, the Free Health Check Program is divided into two main categories, namely General and School. Of the 47,393,692 applicants for the Free Health Check General, as many as 45,957,044 people attended and took advantage of the examination service.

This high participation shows that access to free health check services is able to eliminate cost barriers that have long been the reason why people are reluctant to check their health.

Meanwhile, the Free School Health Check also recorded equally significant results. Of the 25,734,664 applicants, as many as 24,335,107 participants attended or equivalent to 94.56 percent.

A total of 16,758,454 students received a complete health examination that reached various levels of education, ranging from elementary, middle, high schools, boarding schools, to extraordinary schools (SLB). The involvement of school students is considered strategic to build health awareness from an early age.

Through the Free School Health Check, the government not only conducts examinations, but also instills an understanding that maintaining health is a long-term need, not just a response when sick.

The enthusiasm of the community for this program can also be seen from the involvement of various age groups. Starting from students, the general public, to the elderly also use this service.

One of them was seen in the health examination activity at the Social Home for the Elderly Tresna Werdha Budi Mulia 3, Cilandak, South Jakarta, which was attended by the elderly community with a high participation rate.

The success of this program is inseparable from cross-sectoral collaboration. In addition to health workers, the support of local governments, educational institutions, and the active participation of the community are important factors in its massive and equitable implementation.

The Ministry of Health emphasized that the Free Health Check is not just a short-term program, but part of a major strategy to improve the quality of life of the Indonesian people.

"Through strengthening early detection and regular examinations, we hope that people will get used to checking their health before serious complaints arise," said a representative of the Ministry of Health.

With a participation rate of 70 million people, the Free Health Check Program is considered quite effective in increasing public health awareness.

In the future, the government's challenge is to ensure the sustainability of the program and expand the reach of services so that the culture of routine health checks can take root in all layers of Indonesian society.