PhilHealth vows faster payments, easier accreditation for LGU health facilities

November 10 ------ The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) pledged to pay local government health facilities faster after they provide care and to simplify the process for getting accredited. “Our commitment to LGUs is simple: fewer hurdles to get accredited and faster payment once services are delivered,” PhilHealth Acting President and CEO Dr. Beverly Lorraine Ho said at the High-Level Universal Health Care Summit. “The goal here is to have a financing system that fits how local facilities actually run,” she added.

The summit, held at the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Regional Office for the Western Pacific, brought together health officials and local government leaders to discuss how to manage money pooled in the Special Health Fund and improve services across local government units (LGUs).

Department of Health (DOH) Acting Secretary Edwin Mercado urged national and local officials to use those resources to strengthen primary care, improve the way facilities are managed and ensure patients can get referrals when they need them. Dr. Eunyoung Ko, WHO representative to the Philippines, said the organization is helping develop 82 provincial health profiles to identify gaps in care and guide local health priorities.

Quezon City Mayor Ma. Josefina Belmonte, interim national president of the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP), said patients should be able to judge the results for themselves. “Ultimately, the success of Universal Health Care will not be measured by the policies or commitments we make, but by whether our people can actually feel the difference — in the health centers they visit, and in the quality of care they receive when they need it most,” she said.

Source: mb.com.ph