Duterte: PhilHealth reviewing new COVID-19 benefit package

A proposed update to the benefit package for COVID-19 testing has been submitted to the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) board for evaluation, President Rodrigo Duterte told Congress on Monday.

Duterte did not give details about the proposal, which also included the establishment of an expert panel to develop and review benefit packages. Health Secretary Francisco Duque III is the chairperson of the PhilHealth board.

It was reported that PhilHealth would lower the package cost from P8,150 to around P4,200 after Senator Franklin Drilon said last month that the current package was double the price from the private sector, including the Philippine Red Cross, which can do the same test for only P4,000. 

However, PhilHealth president and chief executive officer Ricardo Morales said the P8,150 price tag was only for test kits that were acquired in March when there was limited supply.

The government plans to test up to 2% of the country’s population to determine the extent of the COVID-19 outbreak in the Philippines. -NB, GMA News