PhilHealth urged to shoulder cost of treatment of COVID-19 patients

The state-run Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) must shoulder all the treatment expenses of patients who were infected with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a lawmaker said Friday.

Anakalusugan Representative Mike Defensor, House health committee vice-chairman, made the call with 52 COVID-19 cases already recorded in the country and only two have recovered so far.

Of the 52, five have died.

“I am particularly concerned about poor patients. If you don’t shoulder the full cost of treatment, they just might die because they cannot afford COVID-19 treatment,” Defensor said in a statement.

He was referring to the statement made by Health Secretary Francisco Duque III two days ago that COVID-19 patients can use PhilHealth’s three packages for COVID-19 treatment which include: P14,000 isolation package, P16,000 moderate pneumonia package, and P32,000 severe pneumonia package.

“Since COVID-19 manifestations are like those of pneumonia, PhilHealth coverage should be open-ended if the ailment deteriorates into coronavirus disease,” Defensor added.

Quezon Representative Angelina Tan, House health committee chairperson, backed up Defensor’s pitch.

“PhilHealth should adjust its 'case rates' in line with President Duterte’s declaration that the coronavirus outbreak is a 'public health emergency',” Tan added.

Aside from expanded PhilHealth assistance, Defensor called for increasing the number of testing centers for coronavirus disease and the number of isolation rooms.

At present, there are only five test centers nationwide which include three hospitals in Luzon, which are all in Metro Manila, one in Cebu, and another in Davao City.

Elderly pension

House Deputy Minority Leader Carlos Zarate of Bayan Muna party-list, for his part, called on the Social Security System (SSS) to increase the pension of SSS pensioners by P1,000 considering that the elderly is vulnerable to the COVID-19 infection.

"Lives of seniors may be at stake here,” he said in a separate statement.

He, however, echoed Defensor’s call for government subsidy for COVID-19 testing, sanitation kits, hospitalization, especially among the poor.

"What is needed now are medical and economic support for the people, not military and police actions," Zarate added.—AOL, GMA News