President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Friday launched the expanded version of PhilHealth’s “Yaman ng Kalusugan Program Para sa Malayo sa Sakit” (YAKAP), a government health initiative that aims to bring essential medical services closer to communities and reduce preventable deaths due to delayed treatment.
Speaking at the launch held at Quantum Skyview in Gateway Mall 2, Quezon City, the President said the expanded program is designed to address long-standing gaps in healthcare access, particularly in rural and underserved areas where patients often postpone seeking treatment due to distance, cost, or lack of available medical professionals.
“This is not exactly a new program,” Mr. Marcos said.
“But we have expanded and strengthened it because we saw that people often arrive at hospitals when their conditions are already severe. That’s because hospitals are too far, and treatment becomes too difficult to access,” he added.
YAKAP builds on earlier efforts by increasing the capacity of rural health units and small clinics to address common medical concerns, which make up the majority of cases.
It also introduces a range of improvements, including additional medical tests, broader medicine coverage, and a shift toward digital access.
PhilHealth, in partnership with the Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), has added 13 laboratory tests and six cancer screening procedures to its covered services, including mammograms, colonoscopies, and low-dose chest CT scans.
The number of covered medicines has also been expanded from 54 to 75.
The President emphasized the need to make the healthcare process more convenient through digital platforms. He said that PhilHealth has been pushing for the digitalization of its processes, enabling online registration, digital health records, and the use of QR codes for prescription redemptions at accredited pharmacies.
“This is one of the key lessons we learned from the pandemic… We saw what was lacking in our healthcare system and what needed to be improved,” Marcos said.
