GAMOT program launched in Central Visayas

CEBU, Philippines — PhilHealth has officially launched the Guaranteed and Accessible Medications for Outpatient Treatment (GAMOT) benefit in Central Visayas yesterday to improve access to essential medicines for its members.

The launch forms part of PhilHealth’s Yaman ng Kalusugan Program (YAKAP), an enhanced primary care benefit package that shifts the focus of health care from curative treatment to preventive and promotive services.

The program aims to ensure that every Filipino has access to comprehensive, quality, and affordable outpatient care.

Through YAKAP, PhilHealth empowers accredited primary care providers and strengthens partnerships with local government units to support early disease detection, continuous monitoring, and timely management of illnesses, helping prevent complications and avoid unnecessary hospitalization.

The implementation of YAKAP in Central Visayas began in 2025, with the GAMOT benefit marking a major milestone in the region’s health service expansion and PhilHealth’s continued commitment to Universal Health Care.

Under YAKAP, registered PhilHealth members and their declared dependents can avail of medical consultations, health risk assessments, selected laboratory and diagnostic tests, preventive and cancer screening services, health education and counseling, and prescribed essential outpatient medicines through the GAMOT program.

Members are required to choose an accredited YAKAP clinic, which will serve as their primary care provider to ensure continuity of care and regular health monitoring.

The program also strengthens preventive care through expanded cancer screening services, including low-dose chest CT scans for lung cancer, mammography and breast ultrasound for breast cancer, liver cancer screening through alpha-fetoprotein testing and ultrasound, and colonoscopy following positive screening results.

A key feature of the GAMOT benefit is the coverage of 75 essential medicines used to treat common acute and chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, asthma and other respiratory diseases, infections, and selected cardiovascular and neurologic illnesses.

Each member and dependent is entitled to an annual medicine benefit of up to ?20,000.

To avail of the benefit, a member or dependent must first consult a physician at their chosen YAKAP clinic. After assessment, the doctor will issue a prescription, which can be presented along with valid identification at an accredited GAMOT provider for the dispensing of medicines. Beneficiaries are required to return for follow-up consultations to ensure proper monitoring and continuity of treatment.

PhilHealth said the GAMOT rollout, implemented in partnership with the Cebu Provincial Capitol, highlights strong collaboration with local governments and health stakeholders to bring accessible and affordable health services closer to communities.

The agency emphasized that by integrating consultations, diagnostics, preventive screening, and medicines under one coordinated primary care system, YAKAP and GAMOT promote a more proactive and patient-centered approach to health management while helping reduce out-of-pocket expenses for Filipinos.

The launching yesterday at the social hall of the Cebu Provincial Capitol building was led by Department of Health Secretary Dr. Teodoro Herbosa.

He emphasized that the package delivers the core principles of the Universal Healthcare (UHC), particularly equity, access, and affordability.

“UHC is about equity, that means the poor and the rich get the same care. Access means they can get it anytime they need it, not that they have to ask an elected official to help them. And third, affordability is very important because in the GAMOT package, they dictated the price of the 74 medicines,” he said.

Herbosa also announced that they will introduce Diagnosis-Related Groups this year, a payment mechanism that provides higher rates to health facilities treating more critically ill patients.

He outlined three priority areas that the DOH aims to strengthen to improve the country’s healthcare system, nutrition, immunization, and primary healthcare.

On nutrition, Herbosa cited the country’s 22.6% stunting rate, noting that it declined from 27.9% under the Philippine Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Program.

“I’m not happy with that because technically stunting should be zero. Do you want Filipino children to be born with small brains or stunted brains? The answer is no. We should not accept stunted children in the Philippines,” he said.

On immunization, Herbosa described vaccination as the only public health intervention that saves millions of lives. He said the country’s fully immunized child rate stands at around 71%.

Herbosa highlighted the role of local chief executives in advancing primary healthcare.

“I recognize all the mayors here because the mayors are now in charge, together with the municipal health officer, of primary healthcare. This is what we will continue to improve to strengthen the health system,” he said. — Meg Nathalie Valeros, UP intern (FREEMAN)