Marcos says zero subsidy should not affect healthcare operations
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Tuesday ordered Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa to ensure that PhilHealth continues to provide uninterrupted services despite receiving zero subsidy for 2025.
“Make sure that services of PhilHealth remain unhampered … It (zero subsidy ) should not affect the delivery of healthcare services,” President Marcos said during a sectoral meeting at Malacañan Palace.
Mr. Marcos underscored his administration’s commitment to prioritizing social services in the 2025 budget, including education, health, economic services, infrastructure, and agriculture.
During the meeting, the President also urged the Health department to shift its focus from curative to preventive healthcare, noting that “an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.”
He also highlighted the importance of digitizing the DOH to enhance efficiency and improve the delivery of healthcare services.
Herbosa earlier vowed to fix systems at PhilHealth, urging it to prioritize healthcare spending over protecting investments.
“PhilHealth has a lot of money, well over the reserve fund ceiling allowed by law. This surplus is a result of underspending for benefits through the years, which is why Filipino families pay high out of pocket,” Herbosa previously said.
In 2022, around 25 percent of Filipinos reported that they avoided seeking medical care due to financial concerns, according to a survey by the Philippine Statistics Authority.
PhilHealth has approximately P280 billion in reserve funds, a P150 billion surplus, and over P400 billion in investments.
The state health insurer earlier increased almost all of its benefit packages by 50 percent despite getting zero subsidy from the government this year.
According to PhilHealth Circular No. 2024-0037, the increase, which took effect January 1, was approved “to increase support value, decrease out-of-pocket payment (OOP), increase financial risk protection, and ensure the effective delivery of high-quality health services.”
“This (circular) covers around 9,000 case rate packages that we have increased by 50 percent,” PhilHealth senior vice president Israel Pargas said.
PhilHealth said the package hike “effectively reinforces case-based payments and adjusts case rates to align with health inflation, demonstrating a strong commitment to improving healthcare affordability and access.”
Among the medical cases covered by the adjustments are urinary tract infection (UTI), acute gastroenteritis, and influenza.
However, excluded from the 50-percent adjustment are the following: acute stroke, high risk pneumonia, severe dengue, and COVID-19 as these are being rationalized separately.
Z Benefits packages for catastrophic illnesses such as cancer that are being re-costed and are scheduled for adjustment are likewise excluded from the case rate package increase.
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline
“Marcos to DOH: Ensure uninterrupted PhilHealth services.”