Mark wrotedavita, the key difference is that Indonesians who have private health insurance tend to use it to supplement the less comprehensive, government BPJS scheme. From the government's point of view, It makes little sense to require foreign retirees to have private health insurance as a condition for their Kitas, and then to allow them to enjoy the government subsidized scheme as some sort of supplement to their private plans, which by right should be more comprehensive than the basic safety net of BPJS. Also, unlike foreign workers (who can sign up for BPJS), retirees on Kitas tend not to pay any income taxes in Indonesia and therefore should not expect any rights to subsidized government services.
I agree with you Mark...I just don't think those who created the BPJS system had retiree-expats in mind when they were writing the rules...thus the loophole that some managed to use.
However, if the RI should apply the law to tax retirees on their overseas income, which isn't practiced at present, then that issue of belonging to BPJS by retirees might need re-addressing.
I'm comfortable with the system as is and paid for my own medical treatment in Bali, which is currently around US$30,000.
