The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) announced Thursday that its coverage for hemodialysis patients has been expanded from 90 to 156 sessions starting this year.
PhilHealth President and CEO Emmanuel R. Ledesma, Jr. said he is confident the expansion coverage will adequately support people who need the life-saving treatment.
He said the expansion was provided under PhilHealth Circular 2023-0009 entitled “Institutionalization of 156 hemodialysis sessions,” which takes effect on June 22.
Ledesma emphasized that the expansion of hemodialysis coverage, as well as its institutionalization, were made possible with the help of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).
A total of P21 billion from these partner agencies have already been approved for transfer to PhilHealth under the 2023 General Appropriations Act.
PhilHealth members and their qualified dependents diagnosed with chronic kidney disease stage 5 (CKD5) needing hemodialysis as prescribed by their nephrologists may avail themselves of this benefit package.
The patient should also be registered in the PhilHealth Dialysis Database prior to availing.
The state-run health insurer explained that the new total of 156 sessions is in accordance with the current standards for adequate hemodialysis of three sessions per week for 52 weeks, which is equivalent to one year.
With this benefit expansion, CKD5 patients on hemodialysis can avail of as much as P405,600 per year in savings at P2,600 per session.
However, PhilHealth strongly advocates for peritoneal dialysis (PD) first, as it encourages accredited healthcare providers to recommend PD as the initial line of treatment for CKD5 patients.
On the other hand, kidney transplantation remains the gold standard treatment for patients with kidney failure.
The agency also said it is set to increase financial coverage for its peritoneal dialysis and kidney transplantation packages in the next two years.
As such, all health facilities should register their newly diagnosed CKD Stage 5 patients needing renal replacement therapy in the PhilHealth Dialysis Database.