Pangasinan backs Enhanced Universal Health Care program

By March 19, 2018Inside News, News

LINGAYEN–A public consultation was held here on Thursday to hear the voice of the people of Pangasinan on Senate Bill No. 1458 seeking to provide Universal Health Care for all Filipinos filed jointly by Senators JV Ejercito and Nancy Binay.

Ejercito said the bill will enhance the coverage of the Philippine Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) which presently is 91 percent and make it 100 percent.

This means, said Senator Joel Villanueva, who also graced that forum, that any Filipino, even if not card holders, can enjoy the benefit of free hospitalization and medicine if they are confined in any public hospitals.

Noting that the patient still pays a little amount even if they are already covered by PhilHealth, Ejercito said the bill seeks to reduce the out-of-pocket expenses of every patient confined in public hospitals.

He explained that measure was prioritized by President Duterte as he mentioned this in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) last year.

Ejercito told newsmen the additional outlay for the Universal Health Care Program will come from tobacco tax, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office and from local governments that enroll their indigents constituents in the program.

Binay said if the government spent P3 billion from Dengvaxia, it can very well afford to cover the hospitalization of other Filipinos who are not members of PhilHealth.

Ejercito said the measures also include the improvement of facilities in existing public hospitals or the hospitals themselves.

Villanueva said there were other senate bills filed to ensure universal coverage of PhilHealth among them, SBN 60 which proposes an act expediting universal health care through the national health insurance program and improving PhilHealth Insurance packages, authored by him and Senator Ralph Recto.

The public consultation in Pangasinan, attended by municipal and city mayors and their respective city and municipal health officers, was the second held after Legazpi City. This will be followed by another consultation in the cities of Cebu and Davao.

Ejercito expects the measure to be passed into law before the next SONA of the president in July or at least by May or June. (Leonardo Micua)

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