Central government tells Sutiyoso to bring public hospitals back

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The central government requested the Jakarta administration resume control of the newly corporatized hospitals in the city as it fears their new status will adversely affect services to the poor.

In a copy of letter from the Ministry of Home Affairs received by the administration on Tuesday, the ministry said the corporatization of the formerly city-run hospitals was clearly "against the public interest" and failed to address the provision of social services.

The letter, signed by the ministry's secretary general, Siti Nurbaya, and dated Feb. 14, noted that the decision had caused protests by civil servants in the three hospitals -- Cengkareng Hospital in West Jakarta, the Haj Hospital and Pasar Rebo Hospital, both in East Jakarta.

"We ask the Governor (Sutiyoso) to end the implementation of the bylaws (on corporatization) and for the city council to repeal them forthwith," the letter stated.

Siti Nurbaya said the ministry had asked the Jakarta administration to report progress on the repeal no later than 15 days after the date of the letter -- or March 1.

Sutiyoso said the administration was discussing the response to the letter. He planned to defend the decision personally to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

"We have strong arguments ... Unlike less-developed cities of the country, Jakarta is in dire need of more competitive hospitals," he said.

City Health Agency head Abdul Chalik Masulili said changing the hospitals into corporate entities would not mean the poor received less health services.

"The change of status is only meant to give leeway to the respective hospital managements to manage their own resources and raise funds from sources other than the cash-strapped city budget," Masulili said in a hearing with the council's Commission E overseeing education and health on Tuesday.

Corporatized hospitals would continue to dedicate a minimum of 50 percent of their total rooms, emergency care and out-patient departments for low-income patients, he said.

"The hospital managements are able to take profits from services they provide to richer patients in their high-cost rooms to subsidize services for the poor," he said.

He added that the lion's share of the profit, or about 80 percent, would be used to improve services, while the remaining 20 percent would go into city coffers.

The administration is planning to incorporate three more city- run hospitals: Tarakan Hospital in Central Jakarta, Koja Hospital in North Jakarta and Budi Asih Hospital in East Jakarta.