News
Governors Lead the Way in Health Insurance - July 21, 2008
LOCAL chief executives play a vital role in making sure that their needy constituents are provided with health insurance coverage, no matter how challenging the local situation may be.
In the recent Governors Forum organized by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), leading implementers of the Sponsored Program in the provinces shared their experiences with fellow Governors to help fasttrack PhilHealth's attainment of universal coverage.
Among those who showcased their local experiences in providing health insurance for their needy constituents were Governors Jose Maria Zubiri (Bukidnon), Oscar Moreno (Misamis Oriental), Victor Yap (Tarlac), Roger Espina (Biliran), and Felipe Nava (Guimaras). The forum series was attended by Governors and representatives from 71 provinces in the country.
In welcoming the forum delegates, Lorna O. Fajardo, Acting PhilHealth President and CEO said that the forum was intended to show the local chief executives "how we can strengthen the capability of the provincial-owned hospitals and the medical personnel for the benefit of your constituents." She added that PhilHealth is knocking on the LCEs' sense of altruism "..to help us fulfill a gargantuan task that is to provide health insurance coverage to the whole RP population. This is definitely not an easy task. We rely heavily on the participation of several sectors of society, particularly the LGUs for the implementation of the Sponsored Program, the heart of the NHIP."
Zubiri emphasized that when he first assumed office as Governor, the first thing that he did was to visit all barangays in his province to find out what the problems were. He was reportedly surprised to learn that it was the lack of proper health services that left his fellowmen in poverty, more so when a family member needed to be hospitalized. He then initiated the identification of indigent families in his province and worked out the enrolment of an initial 155,000 families into the PhilHealth program.
Today, Bukidnon has achieved universal coverage and the province's health facilities continue to improve partly because of the capitation fund that it receives from PhilHealth. In fact, Zubiri said, they were able to construct a secondary hospital in Manolo Fortich, a 100-bed capacity, tertiary hospital in Maramag and a 200-bed capacity medical center in Malaybalay City to bring quality medical services to the province's population.
In Misamis Oriental, Moreno shared that it was leveraging with PhilHealth that enabled the province to similarly achieve universal coverage. He called on fellow LCEs to look for more opportunities to spend the revenue that they generate, particularly in the area of health care, so that more and better medical services can be made available in the province. "This is one project where the little successes you earn encourage you to do more. I consider this (the PhilHealth program), the best program against poverty alleviation," Moreno said.
He also advised Governors who were just about to enroll into the Sponsored Program to first define the enrolment system, suggesting that it would be better if the province take the lead so that all cities and municipalities will benefit from the capitation fund that comes with the PhilHealth enrolment. At the same time, he urged fellow LCEs to upgrade the hospital facilities in their respective provinces, adding that it was the only way for higher revenues to come in. Finally, Moreno emphasized the need to take care of government physicians and to assure them that their services are still needed in their hometown.
In showcasing the Tarlac experience, Yap said that they initiated a ten-year agreement with all Mayors in the province, providing for a 50-50 sharing in the annual premium of poor families to be enrolled into the program. "The agreement was framed politically positive," he said, adding that even those who are not politically aligned are prompted to join the program because the constituents start asking about the health care benefits being enjoyed by residents in other municipalities in the province.
The capitation fund, Yap said, has been instrumental in the development of the the rural health units' facilities. "Nag-iimprove yung services in terms of preventive care," he said, adding that today, the provincial hospital generates about P11M in additional incentives.
"In 2000, we only had about 3,000 enrolment and we worked our way to 71,000 as of last year. Our income then was only P20M but now it is almost P100M na binabalik din bilang medical services sa tao. With the capitation fund, there is tremendous pouring in of resources to address the needs of our constituency in terms of health services," Yap stressed.
Guimaras, on the other hand, reported that since actively pursuing the Sponsored Program coverage for indigent families, the provincial government has earned more than P60M, 44 percent of which came from PhilHealth. Nava said that because of his constituents' clamor for more services, they are now "going to construct a four-storey building with 28 private rooms and an operating room complex" which they hope to complete soon. Nava added that they will also "put up a PhilHealth wing, a single wing for charity patients catering to PhilHealth card carriers for people to appreciate (the advantages) between being a PhilHealth member and not." He also called on more companies to push for more PhilHealth coverage "because other than getting good service, we are also putting security for our constituents."
Carrying the cudgels for Eastern Visayas, Espina called for unity among fellow Governors and LCEs "to adopt and enrol their constituents into the PhilHealth program", adding that "it's not the income that you can gain but importante yung serbisyo sa tao. Pagdating sa kalusugan, huwag nating isiping kumita. Makakasilbi at makakasuporta ang PhilHealth sa gastusin sa kalusugan," Espina stressed.
A doctor by profession, Espina worked out Biliran's participation in the Sponsored Program under which the province's only 25-bed capacity hospital is now earning P500,000 while facilities and health care services continue to improve. (END)