PhilHealth: Dialysis service centers in all gov’t hospitals possible with UHC law

The establishment of dialysis service facilities in all national, regional, and provincial government hospitals would be possible through the Universal Health Care (UHC) law, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) said Thursday.

PhilHealth senior manager for corporate communications Rey Baleña bared this in an interview on GMA News’ Unang Balita when asked about the filed measure mandating all government hospitals to set up their own dialysis service centers in five years’ time.

“Palagay ko, sapagkat tayo ay nasa Universal Health Care law na, at puspusan naman ang pagkilos ng lahat ng sectors, sapagkat whole of government and whole of society approach na po ang ating approach diyan, eh hindi malayong mangyari ‘yan,” he said.

(I think because we already have the Universal Health Care law, and the efforts of all sectors are in full swing since this is a whole of government and whole of society approach, that is not far from happening.)

“Ang PhilHealth ay nandito para kumbaga ang mga facilities na ‘yan tignan para ma-accredit sila at maibigay ‘yung benefits sa mga pasyenteng magpapa-dialysis sa mga centers na ‘yan na ise-set up sa pamamagitan ng panukala na ‘yan,” he added.

(PhilHealth is here to look at those facilities so they can be accredited, and provide the benefits to the patients who will undergo dialysis in those centers that will be established through this measure.)

During the House Committee on Health hearing on Wednesday, the Department of Health (DOH) expressed support for the legislation but said small hospitals might bear the brunt of its implementation. The proposal will cost them P26 million to set up a dialysis center and P8 million for its annual maintenance.

Meanwhile, the Department of Budget and Management said it will study the proposal.

The National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI), during the same hearing, proposed to provide lifetime support for hemodialysis patients, which the state health insurer would cover the cost and assistance to.

Baleña said that part of its new benefit package for 2023 would be the expansion of the coverage for dialysis sessions from 90 sessions to 156 sessions. — Giselle Ombay/RSJ, GMA Integrated News