The COVID-19 pandemic has made us realize the importance of health sector resilience. Health system transformation is carried out to improve health problems so as to increase the capacity and resilience of the health system. One of the pillars supporting transformation is the pillar of health resilience system transformation consisting of increasing the resilience of the pharmaceutical and medical device sectors and strengthening emergency response resilience with priority programs to increase the resilience of the pharmaceutical and medical device sectors is research and clinical trials of domestically produced medicinal raw materials, drugs, and traditional medicines and domestic phytopharmaca production.

Through Presidential Instruction Number 6 of 2016 concerning Acceleration of Industrial Development Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Industry which was followed up with the issuance of Minister of Health Regulation Number 17 of 2017 concerning Action Plan for the Development of the Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Industry. The government facilitates the development of the pharmaceutical and medical device industry towards natural products, including the traditional medicine industry.

Therefore, to support Presidential Instruction Number 6 of 2016 and Permenkes Number 17 of 2017 and in order to realize the resilience of the domestic pharmaceutical industry, the Directorate of Pharmaceutical Production and Distribution of the Directorate General of Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices held a “Symposium on Increasing the Utilization of Phytopharmacia” and “Launching the Phytopharmacia Formulary” at the Jakarta Convention Center on 30-31 May 2021.

In her report, Director of Pharmaceutical Production and Distribution Agusdini Banun said that the meeting was planned to be attended by 100 participants consisting of 34 Provincial Health Offices, hospital representatives, universities, resource persons and the National Committee for the Formulation of Phytopharmaceutical Formulary, as well as representatives of the Ministry of Health.

Meanwhile, in her remarks, Director General of Pharmacy Rizka Andalucia said that in the context of transforming the national health system, especially the pillar of transforming the health resilience system, the Ministry of Health made efforts to increase the resilience of the pharmaceutical sector. There are 4 pillars of pharmaceutical preparations that are encouraged to increase production in the country, namely chemical active pharmaceutical ingredients (API), vaccines, biopharmaceuticals, and phytopharmaca. Phytopharmaca is a natural ingredient-based product that has been clinically tested and the raw materials used and the products produced are standardized.

“On this occasion, I also convey that the Ministry of Health together with relevant stakeholders has compiled a reference in the form of a formulary which currently contains 5 phytopharmaca items with the same generic composition, intended for service facilities in selecting and using phytopharmacia by utilizing the DAK and capitation funds,” said the Director General of Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices.

Currently the government is also aggressively campaigning for the national movement Bangga Buatan Indonesia (BBI) which aims to increase the awareness of the Indonesian people to love and use the work of the nation's children through Presidential Instruction No.2 of 2022 concerning the acceleration of increasing the use of domestic products and products of micro, small and cooperative enterprises in order to succeed BBI in the implementation of government procurement of goods / services.

The second day of the “Symposium on Increasing Phytopharmaca Utilization” and “Launching Phytopharmaca Formulary” was closed with the launching of the Phytopharmaca Formulary by Deputy Minister of Health Dante Saksono Harbuwono. In his remarks, the Deputy Minister of Health emphasized that the Phytopharmacology Formulary is a guideline for health care facilities in selecting phytopharmacia to be used in health services through the mechanism of using the Special Allocation Fund (DAK) and capitation of the National Health Insurance (JKN).

“The improvement of phytopharmaca as one of the leading domestic products is a plan that we have set in the direction of self-reliance in medicine for the Indonesian people,” said the Deputy Minister of Health.

For this reason, the Deputy Minister of Health emphasized that the use of phytopharmaca must be fully optimized in the framework of pharmaceutical preparations in the country. Efforts can be made by paying attention to the availability of natural raw materials. The reason is that phytopharmaca must use raw materials native to Indonesia, be produced in Indonesia, and meet established standards.

Indonesia itself has abundant potential resources, which can be utilized in the development of traditional medicine and reduce import dependence, including having tropical forests around 142 million hectares which are estimated to have 28 thousand plant species and home to 80% of the world's medicinal plants.

Around 2,848 species of medicinal plants with 32,014 traditional medicinal herbs have been utilized as a method of treatment in Indonesia.

“This has contributed to 270 million Indonesians, 82.3% of whom are JKN participants,” he explained.

The phytopharmaca formulary that has been compiled contains 5 phytopharmaca items with the same generic composition (the number that has obtained a distribution license is 24 phytopharmacia from 6 therapeutic areas (immunomodulator, gastric ulcer, antidiabetes, antihypertension, blood circulation facilitator, and increasing albumin levels).

“This item will later go to LKPP, then can be purchased by BPJS Kesehatan, so that it can be prescribed in daily treatment,” he explained. The Deputy Minister of Health hopes that the Phytopharmaca Formulary can optimize the use of phytopharmaca for health services, which in turn can improve health resilience, especially the independence of pharmaceutical preparations in the country.