DOH: Health coverage for all Filipinos in 2 years

The Department of Health (DOH) expressed confidence that the Aquino administration's universal health care program providing health coverage for all Filipinos, can be achieved within two years. Health secretary Dr. Enrique Ona said on Friday the Aquino administration intends to give all Filipinos access to health services when they need it. "More than a third of our population, mostly those in far-flung barangays and poor communities, still cannot access professional health care," he said. "Many die from sickness without seeing a doctor." Despite challenges, the DOH remains optimistic that the critical reforms in Philippine Health Insurance Company (PhilHealth) will help the country achieve universal health care in two to three years. "Health care financing is an investment for the future of the Filipino," he said. "It is an investment for a healthier and a more dynamic Philippines. There is no better alternative." Ona said President Benigno Simeon Aquino III is especially concerned about the lack of health services for the poorest Filipinos. To address this, DOH will strengthen the national health insurance program by enrolling five million of the poorest Filipino families into PhilHealth. The five million families that will be enrolled in PhilHealth will be identified through the Department of Social Welfare and Development's (DSWD) National Household Targeting System. This is the same system used to determine the recipients for the DSWD's Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program. "As we speak, government personnel are working to identify more than five million poor families through the National Household Targeting System," Ona said. "These are the same households for which we propose and started full National government subsidy of PhilHealth premiums," he said. Ona explained that from the estimated P800 to P1,400 monthly subsidy that CCT recipients will be given every month, P100 will go to PhilHealth for the family's membership. WHO: Countries should strengthen health financing Ona said the move to provide health care for all is in line with the World Health Organization's (WHO) recommendations in its latest World Health Report. The report pointed out that member countries' financing systems for health can be modified to include universal health coverage. According to the WHO report, health expenses push 100 million people into poverty each year, especially in countries where people pay for health services from their own pockets. Key areas The World Health Report highlighted three key areas where health reforms are needed: 1. Lack of funds for health The WHO recommends that at least 4 to 5 percent of a country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) should be allocated to health. In 2007, only 3.2 percent of the Philippines' GDP was allocated to the DOH. The WHO also suggested that more money can be generated through more efficient and effective tax collection, particularly through tobacco taxation. In countries like Lao and Vietnam, a 50 percent increase in excise tax represent more than 25 percent increase in its government's health budget. 2. Financial barriers to obtaining care The government should remove key financial barriers to obtaining care. In 2009, countries in the WHO Southeast Asia and Western Pacific regions reduced direct payments to 30 to 40 percent of total health expenditures to attain universal health care coverage. 3. Inefficient use of resources According to WHO, the inefficient use of resources, like paying too much for medicines and health technologies, amount to a wasted 20 to 30 percent from the health spending. Smarter spending could increase global health coverage. WHO Director Dr. Henk Bekedam said he was impressed with the DOH's commitment to ensure universal coverage for all Filipinos but noted that the Philippines can do better. "If you want universal coverage, the government should at least be spending 4 to 5 percent of the GDP in health. By mid-2011, we should have a very clear picture of the context and component of universal heath care in the Philippines," he said. Poorest of the poor Ona admitted the difficulty to identify the families included in the "poorest of the poor" category. He is thus urging local government units to enroll families in the second income quintile to PhilHealth. Those included in this income quintile are families who earn an average monthly income of over P6,000 or around 4.2 million families in the country. Along with increasing membership to PhilHealth, Ona cited the need to inform members about their benefits. PhilHealth data showed that about 15 percent of eligible health insurance claims were not filed because PhilHealth members were not aware of their benefits or how to avail of them. - VVP, GMANews.TV