Sutiyoso defends new hospital status

Sutiyoso defends new hospital status

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Despite mounting protests against the corporatization of three
city-run hospitals, Governor Sutiyoso refuses to reverse the
decision.

In a letter dated Mar. 8, Sutiyoso told the Ministry of Home
Affairs that the policy could be revoked through a presidential
decree or a Supreme Court ruling.

"The main objective of the change of status is to boost the
quality of service to the public," Sutiyoso asserted, arguing
that the change of status would not affect its preferential
treatment for the poor.

The ministry of home affairs sent a letter to the Jakarta
administration last Feb. 14, urging it to revoke its decision to
turn three hospitals -- RSUD Pasar Rebo, RS Haji in Pondok Gede,
both in East Jakarta, and RSUD Cengkareng in West Jakarta -- into
profit-oriented hospitals.

The ministry argued that the corporatization of the three
hospitals was "against the common good of the people".

Sutiyoso said Article 145 of Law No. 32/2004 on regional
governments stipulates that any revocation of a city bylaw can
only be carried out through a presidential decree or judicial
review made by the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, around 500 residents of Gedong, Ciracas, Cijantung
and Pondok Gede subdistricts -- all located near the Pasar Rebo
hospital -- staged a rally in front of the City Council on
Wednesday to protest the hospital's "high" health service fees.

"After the change of status, Pasar Rebo hospital raised its
registration fee from Rp 2,000 to Rp 5,000, not to mention the
increased service fees," said Pius Toa, a resident of Gedong
subdistrict in East Jakarta.

Pius said the increase was too much for residents on a low-
income.

City Health Agency head Abdul Chalik Masulili emphasized
earlier that the change in status was only meant to give leeway
to the respective hospital managements to manage their own
resources and raise fund from sources other than the cash-
strapped city budget, including by taking profit from richer
patients.

Masulili said that the agency would still require those
hospitals to maintain a minimum 50 percent of their total rooms,
emergency room services (UGD) and out-patient services for the
poor.

Aside from those three hospitals, the administration also
plans to corporatize three other city-run hospitals -- Tarakan
Hospital in Central Jakarta, Koja Hospital in North Jakarta and
Budi Asih Hospital in East Jakarta.