IATF orders PhilHealth to pay hospital dues in all high risk, critical COVID-19 areas nationwide

The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) has ordered state-run Philippine Health Insurance Corporation to pay its hospital dues in areas with high risk and critical COVID-19 situation nationwide, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said Friday.

Roque, in a statement, said that such a move was made because the high risk and critical risk areas will also be prioritized in the COVID-19 vaccine allocation, human health resource deployment, and other relevant COVID-19 responses, as applicable.

Prior to this move, the state-run health insurance under its Circular 2021-0004 was only to prioritize settling its dues to health care facilities in the National Capital Region and the provinces of Batangas, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Pampanga, and Rizal.

In addition, the IATF also tasked the National Task Force (NTF) Task Group Treat, through the One COVID Referral System, to utilize the Feasibility Analysis of Syndromic Surveillance Using Spatio-Temporal Epidemiological Modeler for Early Detection of Diseases  projections on target beds and human resources for health.

“These projections will identify health capacity needs required to lower health care and intensive care unit (ICU) utilization rates,” Roque said.

“The NTF shall also review and implement the recommended Prevent-Detect-Isolate-Treat- Reintegrate strategies to reduce the health utilization rates and augment the needs of human resources for health,” he added.

Specifically, Roque said the government will identify target additional beds on a weekly basis that will:

•     substantially reduce health care and ICU utilization rates,
•     determine and list specific health facilities and infrastructure to contribute these additional beds, and
•     operationalize how these beds become functional with adequate human resources for health and equipment. 

Roque earlier said he hopes the government can establish 200 additional ICU beds for COVID-19 patients.

Areas under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) until April 30 include Metro Manila and provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, Quirino, Abra and Santiago City, Isabela.

The MECQ protocol bans non-essential trips and partly shuts down non-essential businesses and services.

Those under General Community Quarantine (GCQ) during the same period, on the other hand, include:

• Isabela  
• Nueva Vizcaya  
• Batangas  
• Quezon province  
• Tacloban City  
• Iligan City  
• Davao City and
• Lanao Del Sur

GCQ partly allows leisurely trips and partly allows non-essential business and services to operate.

The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, for its part, has been assigned by the IATF to develop training and instructional materials to strengthen COVID-19 response  at the barangay level.

The IATF, in the same meeting, also approved the request of the Philippine National Police, through its Air Unit, to conduct an Initial Type Rating Training for Pilots.

This training, however, should be done in a non-quarantine hotel.

The Philippines has 107,988 active COVID-19 cases so far. Of this number, 8,767 new cases were recorded on April 22 alone.—AOL, GMA News