News
PhilHealth Broadens Health Care Provider Base - July 19, 2006
IN order to expand access to health care services, the Philippine
Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) continues to ensure
that a health care provider is always ready to take care of
PhilHealth members and dependents.
In a press briefing at the Annabel’s Restaurant in Quezon
City this morning, Lorna O. Fajardo, Acting PhilHealth President
and CEO said that the number of accredited health care providers
has significantly increased over the years. For instance, she
said, "...for in-patient care alone, the total number
of accredited hospitals has increased from 1,491 in the year
2000 to 1,574 hospitals in 2005. There are now 83 more hospitals
to cater to the in-patient needs of PhilHealth members and dependents
and the rest of the population."
Fajardo added that to facilitate access to surgical services,
PhilHealth has accredited 30 ambulatory surgical clinics (ASCs).
These centers provide surgical services even while the members
are inside the shopping malls, thereby bringing health care
services closer to Filipinos.
She stressed that by introducing the Outpatient Primary Care
Benefit Package in Year 2000 for sponsored members, PhilHealth
has spearheaded the upgrading of government-operated health
centers all over the country. "We have ensured that
these centers or rural health units (RHUs) provide out-patient
diagnostic services to Filipinos in the remotest towns,"
adding that nearly 1,100 government health centers or RHUs are
now accredited with PhilHealth. "All of these health
centers are staffed by doctors, nurses and midwives supported
by medical technologists who are ready to provide the out-patient
diagnostic benefits to sponsored members."
PhilHealth also came out with the first of the Millennium Development
Goals or MDG benefits in 2003. It started covering the care
of tuberculosis through the TB-Directly Observed Treatment Shortcourse
and will soon cover the care of HIV-AIDS, malaria and other
interventions addressing the MDG health targets.
The first half of Year 2006 also saw a massive roll-out of the
TB-DOTS benefit with the number of accredited providers now
hitting 220. "We expect this number to reach 500 before
the year ends," Fajardo said.
Earlier, in 2003, PhilHealth began implementing the Maternity
Care Package which covered the first and second normal deliveries.
In less than three years, PhilHealth has accredited 170 Maternity
Lying-in Clinics or non-hospital maternity care providers. It
also facilitated the increase in the number of Free Standing
Dialysis Clinics by accrediting them as providers in 2003. At
present PhilHealth has already accredited 24 Free Standing Dialysis
Clinics. "We also have around 20,000 accredited doctors
nationwide, ready to provide the quality care that our members
from various sectors deserve," Fajardo emphasized.
Still, Fajardo said, PhilHealth continues to introduce innovations
to improve its communication efforts with accredited doctors
and health facilities. "Starting next year, all PhilHealth
communications that pertain to the status of accreditation of
these providers, advisories, circulars and all other updates
concerning the health care providers will be sent through electronic
mail. We have also started urging hospitals to invest in information
and communication technology (ICT) by requiring those in Levels
II, III and IV to introduce electronic admission and other hospital
logbooks by 2007," Fajardo said.