City to double health spending<\/p>\n
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
The City Health Agency has proposed Rp 100 billion (US$10.99
\nmillion) be spent on a health care card scheme for poor families
\nin 2005, more than twice the amount in this year's city budget.<\/p>\n
The Gakin card scheme would cover about 40 percent of
\nJakarta's 8.3 million population, or about 3.32 million people,
\nagency head Abdul Chalik Masulili said on Thursday.<\/p>\n
This year, with Rp 40 billion spent, only 5 percent of the
\npopulation held Gakin cards, or about 415,000 people.<\/p>\n
Abdul said a Rp 21 billion fuel subsidy fund from the state
\nbudget would help make up the difference.<\/p>\n
"We have to increase the fund for health services for poor
\nfamilies. Next year, our target will be much higher," he told The
\nJakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Masulili said the jump in the number of people targeted to
\nreceive the service came after data from neighborhood units was
\nused to calculate the number of poor families in the city instead
\nof figures provided by the Central Bureau of Statistics.<\/p>\n
The administration had earlier been asked by the City Council
\nto upgrade the existing database on poor families in the capital.
\nThe database is expected to be completed in the first half of
\nnext year.<\/p>\n
Masulili said local government agencies had been discussing
\nwhat the criteria was for poor people who deserved health
\nservices.<\/p>\n
"We will verify our list of those who deserve services with
\nthe neighborhood unit chiefs," he said.<\/p>\n
City Council deputy speaker Ahmad Heryawan had said earlier
\nthe new Gakin card scheme would provide discounts for health
\nservices based on the recipients' income levels and living
\ncircumstances.<\/p>\n
Under the proposed scheme, some people would qualify for
\nmedical discounts of 25 percent, 50 percent, or 75 percent, while
\nthe poorest of the poor would pay nothing at all.<\/p>\n
Masulili said in total, the city was expected to allocate Rp
\n800 billion to the health sector next year. He did not provide a
\ncost breakdown.<\/p>\n
The administration has proposed a hike in its overall budget
\nfrom Rp 12.26 trillion this year to Rp 13.93 trillion next year.
\nThe draft budget will be deliberated by the administration and
\nthe council in December.<\/p>\n
The budget will be prioritized for the construction of the
\nbusway corridors (Rp 515 billion), land acquisition for the East
\nFlood Canal construction (Rp 450 billion), maintenance of small
\nlakes and Angke and Ciliwung rivers (Rp 401.5 billion), the
\nconstruction of low-cost apartments (Rp 150 billion) and the
\nprocurement of incinerators for waste treatment facilities (Rp
\n400 billion).<\/p>",
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