Health Minister Responds to Viral Patient's Plight: 'I Feel Sad, I Have Failed'

Health Minister (Menkes) Budi Gunadi Sadikin has spoken out regarding several doctors and health workers (nakes) who left negative comments on Yurizal Tri Chaerawan, a BPJS Kesehatan patient who recently went viral.

As Health Minister, Budi said he has been tasked by President Prabowo Subianto to raise the public’s life expectancy.

“My task from the President is to raise the average life expectancy of the Indonesian people from 72 to 76 (years),” Budi said at the Ministry of Health office in South Jakarta on Wednesday (5/8/2026).

He admitted he is deeply saddened whenever a member of the public cannot be saved, especially if the person dies at a young age.

“So every time someone dies, my heart is sad. Especially if they die young. I feel that as Health Minister I have failed when our friends die young,” Budi said.

According to Budi, it is the government’s duty to provide the best health services for the public. In this way, life expectancy can be increased.

However, he acknowledged that the services provided by the government still have many shortcomings.

“Those shortcomings exist, and that is what we must improve, whether in health facilities, health equipment, or health human resources,” Budi explained.

Meanwhile, on the social media platform Threads, a man named Yurizal complained through his personal account that he had not received an inpatient room after waiting for eight hours.

In the status he wrote, he said he would not reveal to the public which hospital was involved, because he was a BPJS patient.

The status then received many negative responses from netizens, including doctors and health workers. Shortly afterwards, Yurizal’s family announced on the platform that Yurizal had passed away.