Introduced less than a decade ago, Indonesia’s universal health coverage (Jaminan Kesehatan Nasional) now covers more than 90% of the country’s population: more than 254 million people. Professor Ali Ghufron Mukti was at the heart of this extraordinary project, as an internationally recognized researcher in epidemiology, health insurance, managed health care and health financing, who was appointed chair of the taskforce for its implementation and then Vice-Minister and Acting Minister for Health. He is now the President Director of the Indonesian Social Security Administering Body for Health. In this talk, Professor Mukti will discuss the challenges involved in creating and running a social health insurance scheme with a managed care concept and comprehensive benefits – on a globally significant scale.