VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Jan. 28 - The Indonesian government spent Rp14.5 trillion on the treatment of COVID-19 patients at more than 1,600 hospitals across the country from March to December, 2020.

"Up till now the total amount that we have paid to 1,683 hospitals since March (2020) is more than Rp14.526 trillion, or close to Rp15 trillion," director general of Health Services at the Health Ministry, Abdul Kadir, said in a written statement at an event FMB9 monitored online in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Responding to a report that the government has not cleared COVID-19 service claims from privately-run hospitals, he said there was a technical obstacle to the disbursement of hospital claims submitted to the government in late December, 2020 due to the New Year holidays.

"We have not paid claims filed in January (2021), because the budget fund that we will pay to them is still being processed at the Finance Ministry. So the budget fund has not been disbursed," he said.

President director of Pertamedika Fathema Hospital, Djan Rachmat, confirmed the delay in the payment of hospital claims for the treatment of COVID-19 patients in January, 2021.

However, the state-owned hospital has so far faced no issues in claiming COVID-19 patients' bills from the government, he added. (Antaranews)