Senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito has urged the Senate to amend Republic Act No. 11223 or the Universal Healthcare (UHC) Law to lower current premium rates being collected by the Philippine Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).
Ejercito, one of the principal sponsors of the UHC Law during his first term in the Senate, said adjusting these premium rates is necessary since the country is still recovering from the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have to adapt to the situation. The intention might be good in increasing the rates, but we should understand we are still recovering from the pandemic.
In July 2022, Ejercito filed Senate Bill No. 160, which aims to introduce several reforms to the collection of PhilHealth premiums.
Proposed amendments seek to revise PhilHealth’s premium rate schedule; base the contribution of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and self-employed individuals on the lowest premium rate; free distressed or repatriated OFWs from their obligation to resolve their unpaid premiums upon their return to the country; and remove the payment of PhilHealth contributions as a requirement for the issuance of Overseas Employment Certificates.
Other proposed changes to the premium collection scheme include fixing the income ceiling for premium contributions at P40,000 as the basis for premium rates and increasing the national government’s subsidy for indirect contributors.
Under the UHC Law, direct contributors include regular employees, self-earning professional practitioners, migrant workers, qualified dependents, and lifetime members.
Meanwhile, indirect contributors refer to individuals who do not fall under any of the said categories of direct contributors and whose premiums shall be subsidized by the national government.
Senators Grace Poe, Imee Marcos, Bato dela Rosa, and Sonny Angara also filed similar measures.
Initially, the current premium scheme was intended to help PhilHealth fund a variety of medical services that are to be made more accessible under the UHC Law.
However, the lawmaker from San Juan City said the rates stated in the UHC Law were based on pre-pandemic information.
