INDIGENT families in the city will now have access to health care as the City Government enrolled some 50,000 poor families to the state-run healthcare agency, PhilHealth.
PhilHealth Regional vice president Datu Masiding Alonto Jr. said the city has enrolled 50,000 families last year to its point-of-care program and the partnership will continue as the City Government inks another memorandum of agreement which adopts another 50,000 poor families for free healthcare benefits.
"Our indigent families will enjoy Philhealth benefits to what is accorded to PhilHealth members," he said.
In Northern Mindanao, the JR Borja General hospital (JRBGH) has been recognized as the second hospital with the highest PhilHealth paid claims last 2016, tailing Northern Mindanao Medical Center which placed first and paid the most to PhilHealth.
Records showed that the City Hospital paid some P140 million to PhilHealth in 2016 which increased from the previous year’s P120 million.
This year, Alonto said the City Government might have to pay higher than what it paid last year as the they plan to expand the program from P50,000 to P75,000 beneficiaries enrolled to the healthcare program.
Dr. Ramon Nery, hospital executive officer, said about 93 percent of the patients of the said hospital are PhilHealth beneficiaries and are able to avail of free services.
From January to September 2016, the City Hospital’s income spiked to P135 million, from only P19 million in 2013, noting that PhilHealth is the hospital's bread and butter, as all patients admitted to the hospital are automatically enrolled in the said insurance system.
With this development, Nery said the City Council has allocated P120 million for the hospital to jump from Level I to a Level II hospital.
The City Government could self-regenerate using revenues from health care services, in turn, revenues raised from Philhealth payments would be channeled right back to the hospital through medicines and other services for the people, said Nery.
