"The central government is now drawing up a program to provide health insurance for the poor segment of the population," Coordinating Minister for People`s Welfare Agung Laksono said during a visit at the Health Polytechnical campus in Tadui village, Mamuju district.
He said the hospital bills of poor people would be paid by the state through the State Budget so that they would have access to health care services at community health centers or hospitals free of charge.
"The government will soon register all people who so far cannot get medical treatment because they cannot afford the cost at community health centers or hospitals," he said.
The program would be implemented starting in 2014 so that eventually nobody in the country needed to be deprived of health care because of penury, Agung said.
(Uu.KR-MFH/HAJM/H-YH)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2012
