Over 15,000 Health Facilities Prepared for This Year's Eid Exodus

TheIndonesia.id - The Ministry of Health is cooperating with regional and other stakeholders to ready over 15 thousand health facilities in 38 provinces to anticipate emergencies during the Eid al-Fitr homecoming exodus period.

The ministry’s Director General of Health Services, Azhar Jaya, stated that those health facilities comprise more than 10 thousand community health centers (puskesmas), around three thousand hospitals, and more than a thousand health service posts.

“We readied posts at several locations, from toll roads to tourist destinations,” he noted at a send-off event for the Integrated Health Service Post Monitoring Team in Jakarta on Thursday, as quoted by Antara.

He explained that the ministry is cooperating with the National Police (Polri) and Ministry of Transportation to determine the locations of the posts, especially in risky areas.

“We have instructed health officials to continue working as usual during this holiday,” he remarked.

According to Jaya, health services at those posts are provided for free. However, he stated that if people need additional facilities and services, then they can use the national health insurance program of state health insurer BPJS Kesehatan.

To this end, he expressed hope that people would also prepare their BPJS Kesehatan cards as a precautionary measure.

He explained that for the 2024 Eid al-Fitr, it is projected that 193.6 million people will travel for the homecoming exodus, which is forecast to peak on Monday, April 8, with 26.6 million people.

He reminded private vehicle users for the exodus to check the readiness of their vehicles, such as brakes, as well as the physical readiness.

"Those who are fasting should eat first. Do not miss suhoor. If you are tired, then take a break in the middle of the journey," he remarked.

Moreover, he warned people against using doping or taking narcotics to increase their stamina to drive.