LINGAYEN–The number of indigent families enrolled in the health insurance program this year has far exceeded the number enrolled at any other period in the past.

Based on records from the Provincial Population Office, headed by Luzviminda Muego, 26,005 families were already enrolled through the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) in the last six months of last year.

Also included are 5,915 families who are old enrollees and whose PhilHealth cards had just been renewed.

PhilHealth membership of another 50,000 indigent families are now being processed for distribution on September 30.

This will bring the total number of indigent families to 81,920. The target set by the Espino administration to be enrolled by the province up to the end of this year is 124,000 families which comprise 88 per cent of the total number of indigent families in Pangasinan

Muego said the provincial government spent P2, 357,970 million as premium for the 26,005 enrollees of PhilHealth from July to December 2007 alone.

Under Espino’s administration, the provincial government has fully assumed the burden of paying premiums of all PhilHealth enrollees. The past provincial administration had a 50-50 sharing arrangement with municipal or city governments.

The remaining 12 per cent of the indigents, however, are expected to be covered by premiums coming from congressmen, mayors, non-government organizations and well-off families sponsoring health insurance for the indigents.—LM

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