(Register all workers and their family members) without exception.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Vice President Ma'ruf Amin has asked local governments to strengthen social protection for vulnerable people by registering them for the National Healthcare and Social Security Agency’s (BPJS Kesehatan’s) National Health Insurance (JKN) Program.

"I ask the local government to actively register the vulnerable community, including persons with disabilities, elderly people, and displaced people, for BPJS Kesehatan," he said at the “Awarding Ceremony of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) for Regional Governments” at Balai Sudirman here on Tuesday.

He also urged local governments to ensure that employers in each region register their workers and the workers’ family members for the JKN program.

"(Register all workers and their family members) without exception. In addition, (the local government should) encourage informal workers who have got sufficient income to register themselves and their families for the JKN program,” he said.

Furthermore, he asked local leaders to keep improving the quality of health services for the community, for instance, by providing excellent health facilities and workers as well as preparing budget allocations to pay the contributions for the JKN program on time.

"I laud the (local governments’) commitment to providing regional budgets to pay the health insurance premiums. Strong funding will ensure the sustainability of the (JKN) program," he said.

Amin also asked BPJS Kesehatan to increase the quality of the implementation of the JKN program so that health services in Indonesia can improve and benefit all people.

"The JKN program must highly benefit the community and make the Indonesian people proud," he remarked.

He presented the UHC Awards to a number of provinces, such as Bengkulu, Yogyakarta, Bali, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Central Kalimantan, North Kalimantan, North Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi, West Papua, Central Papua, Highland Papua, and Southwest Papua.

On the same occasion, the president director of BPJS Kesehatan, Ali Ghufron Mukti, said that his agency is striving to support local governments so that the residents of all regions can be included in the JKN-Healthy Indonesia Card (KIS) Program.

In addition, his agency is seeking to increase people’s access to health services by collaborating with health facilities—both first-level facilities, such as community health centers (puskesmas), and advanced-level facilities, such as regional hospitals.

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Translator: Rangga Jingga, Uyu Liman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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