Sanglah Hospital urges local administrations to pay debts

The management of Sanglah General Hospital has frequently asked the Bali provincial administration and regency administrations to pay Rp 23.68 billion (US$2.5 million) in debts for the procurement of medicine and health care for financially disadvantaged patients.

Ayu Sri Saraswati, the hospital's finance director, said the hospital had to pay distributors and health service providers. "We hope the debts will be paid by Dec. 15 at the latest, since it will be the closing financial statement," the director said.

Saraswati explained that the Bali provincial administration owed the hospital around Rp 11.58 billion, while some regency administrations were Rp 12.10 billion in debt.

"Around 80 percent of money went to medicinal procurement and health treatment of rabies victims," Saraswati said.

The money was used to procure anti-rabies vaccines, she said, adding that the debt was caused by the enforcement of a health-care scheme for people living in poverty.

Under the scheme, patients from underprivileged families are entitled to free-hospital treatment using third class facilities. The provincial government will contribute to 40 percent of the medical cost, while the remaining 60 percent will be covered by the regional administration.

The scheme is enforced in five regencies, Tabanan, Buleleng, Klungkung, Badung and Karangasem, excluding Gianyar, Denpasar and Jembrana.

Gianyar and Denpasar require patients to pay for 60 percent of the medical cost, while Jembrana regency has its own health scheme for its residents who live in poverty.

The scheme had apparently burdened the hospital since it continued treating patients from families living in poverty. "We need medicine and other health-care items to accelerate our health-care services for the community," she said. Some regencies outside of Bali, such as West and East Nusa Tenggara and East Java, are also in debt to the hospital.