Jakarta – The government through the Ministry of Health will officially launch the Free Health Check Program (CKG) for school children starting in July 2025. This program targets around 53 million students from Elementary School to High School levels, including madrasah education units, Islamic boarding schools, special schools, public schools, and school-age children who do not receive formal education. This strategic step is part of the national priority to strengthen basic health services for Indonesia’s young generation.
Indonesian Minister of Health, Budi Gunadi Sadikin, stated that the implementation of this program will be focused on more than 282 thousand schools and madrasas spread throughout Indonesia. Health checks will be carried out directly in the school environment, adjusted to the level of education of each student.
“There are around 250 million schools, and logistically the implementation makes more sense because the place is fixed and does not move. With the inclusion of schools as the location of implementation, this number will increase drastically,” said Budi.
Budi emphasized that currently the coverage of the free health check program has reached 200 thousand checks per day. The importance of comprehensive screening, including physical and mental health checks, considering the prevalence of mental disorders in students is quite high but often undetected.
“If we can get half of the total school children, we can finish in the next three months. It is hoped that this program can be an important milestone in early detection of health problems that can hinder student growth and achievement,” said Budi.
Head of the Ministry of Health’s Communication and Public Information Bureau, Aji Muhawarman, explained that this program will start together with the new school year 2025/2026 and will be implemented in stages according to the readiness of local schools and health centers. School-age children who study at home or do not attend school can also take advantage of this service at the nearest health center.
“The target of the examination is school children, starting from elementary school/MI, junior high school/MTs, and senior high school/vocational school/MA. This includes madrasahs, Islamic boarding schools, special schools, and public schools,” he said.
Aji added, there are at least 15 types of examinations that will be carried out, starting from nutritional status, blood pressure, blood sugar, tuberculosis, ear health, teeth, eyes, hepatitis, to reproductive health. Especially for junior high and high school students, additional screening will be carried out for anemia and thalassemia.
“Intensive coordination is being carried out with the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Religion, and Ministry of Home Affairs to ensure the smooth running of the program in all regions,” he added.
From the regions, the readiness for implementation has also begun to be matured. The Head of the South Sulawesi Provincial Health Office, Ishaq Iskandar, stated that his party had coordinated across sectors, starting from the ministry to the ranks of the district/city government. Health checks will be carried out simultaneously in July 2025 and will cover all schools without exception.
“We will target all schools, both public and private. The examinations will be carried out in each school by health center officers,” he explained.
Furthermore, Ishaq revealed that important aspects such as nutrition, dental and oral health, vision, and behavior such as smoking habits and psychological stress due to bullying will be examined.
“This is all important so as not to disrupt their achievements and learning process,” he stressed.
With systematic implementation and wide coverage, the Free Health Check program for school children is expected to be a concrete step by the government in creating a healthy and resilient generation towards Golden Indonesia 2045. This program is not only an investment in health, but also in the future of the nation.
