New Minister of Health Regulation on Clinics

Minister of Health Regulation No. 028/MENKES/PER/I/2011 on Clinics (‘Regulation’) has been issued in order to develop health facility services. Considering that the community needs clinics, as an accessible and high quality health facility services, the Regulation aims to provide a sufficient legal framework and replace the previous regulation, which is seems as no longer being suitable for the development of health facility services in Indonesia. 

Clinics, based on their services, are divided into two types: (i) primary (pratama) clinics, which provide basic medical services and (ii) main (utama) clinics, which provide basic and/or specialist medical services. Primary clinic can be established by individuals or in the form of a legal entity. However, primary clinics that provide hospitalization units, and main clinics have to be established in the form of legal entity (Article 5).

Primary clinics consists of at least 2 doctors or dentists as its medical staff and are led by a doctor or a dentist. Main clinics, at least, consists of 1 specialist doctor and are led by a specialist doctor or a specialist dentist. Each practicing member of medical staff has to be registered (surat tanda registrasi) and hold a practice license (surat izin praktik) pursuant to the prevailing health laws and regulations (Article 18 (1)). It should be noted that a clinic is not allowed to employ a foreign health personnel (including medical staff, nursing staff, and pharmacists).

To establish and operate a clinic, a recommendation from the relevant regional health agency has to be obtained, followed by a license from the regional government (Article 21). Article 21 (3) sets out the details of the supporting documents that have to be submitted in order to apply for a clinic license, which consist of, among others: documents of incorporation of the legal entity (unless it is established by an individual), environmental documents, land utilization documents, and a profile of the clinic. The clinic license will be issued for a period of 5 years and can be extended. A clinic can also have a clinic laboratory service, the license for which is then integrated with the clinic license. 

The regional or central government, pursuant to its authority, can pursue administrative sanction (in the form of verbal notices, written notices, or license revocation) in the framework of supervising and monitoring the implementation of health facility services.

Following the enactment of the Regulation, all health facilities services that provide basic or specialist medical services, have to adjust their operations to be in conformity with the Regulation with 2 years (i.e. by 4 January 2013). 

The Regulation repeals and replaces Minister of Health Regulation No. 920/MENKES/PER/XII/1986.

The Regulation has been in force since 4 January 2011.