Indonesia’s Free Health Check (CKG) program is expected to yield long-term savings on national health expenditures, though the financial benefits may not be immediately apparent, according to the Health Ministry.
Potential for Long-Term Savings
“Savings will definitely occur, but will they happen in the first year? Not necessarily,” said Director General of Public Health Maria Endang Sumiwi during a virtual press conference on Friday, January 23, 2026. The CKG program aims to detect diseases early, allowing for more cost-effective treatment at primary care facilities like community health centers and clinics.
Without early detection, conditions like hypertension and diabetes can lead to serious and expensive complications such as kidney failure, stroke, or heart disease. “The cost of hemodialysis, stroke surgery, or heart surgery is much higher than managing hypertension on a daily basis,” Sumiwi remarked.
Millions of Cases Identified
The Health Ministry has identified approximately 7 million cases of hypertension among adults through the CKG program, rising to around 10 million when including the elderly. Consistent management of these cases at primary health care facilities could significantly reduce the risk of severe complications.
While the initial phase of the program resulted in increased financing due to the discovery of previously undetected diseases, Sumiwi emphasized that these were identified at an earlier, and therefore cheaper, stage of development. “In the first year, we found more diseases, but we found them at an early stage, which is cheaper to treat,” she said.
The ministry plans to focus on strengthening treatment management and continuity in 2026, rather than solely on initial screenings, to realize the program’s long-term savings potential.
Presidential Support for the Program
These statements respond to President Prabowo Subianto’s assertion that the CKG program will contribute to state budget savings. Subianto described the program as a rational policy designed to safeguard the state budget in the long term.
“We provide free health checks to all Indonesian citizens; this is not a populist program, but a rational one aimed at saving money,” Subianto stated during a speech at the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2026 in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, January 22, 2026.
Subianto expressed confidence that the free health check program will reduce the long-term burden of medical costs through early disease detection.
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