Indonesia Allocates $15 Billion Health Budget and Fast-Tracks 70,000 Specialist Doctors

On August 15, in a speech on the 2026 Draft State Budget (RAPBN) at the Plenary Session of the House of Representatives (DPR), President Prabowo Subianto announced a health budget of Rp244 trillion (around USD 15 billion) for 2026. The budget aims to fully cover national health insurance costs for 96.8 million poor and vulnerable citizens.
President Prabowo stated that the budget will prioritize strengthening the National Health Insurance program and revitalizing hospitals. It will also focus on accelerating efforts to reduce stunting, a key priority of the President, under which a USD 4.3 billion free meal program was launched. Other priorities include providing nutritional support for children and pregnant women, controlling communicable diseases, reducing tuberculosis (TB) cases, and implementing the Free Health Screening program.
The 2026 healthcare budget represents an increase from this year’s Rp218.5 trillion allocation, as reported by Indonesia's Ministry of Finance. Additionally, the Health Ministry has proposed a Rp114 trillion budget for 2026, which appears to form part of the President’s overall Rp244 trillion health allocation, allocating Rp9.7 trillion (around USD 592 million) to implement the government’s “quick-win” health programs. These include upgrading facilities in 10 hospitals, eradicating TB, and rolling out a free health check-up program targeting 130.3 million participants in 2026. The Ministry is also working to accelerate progress toward its goal of training and deploying 70,000 specialist doctors.