MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation promised Wednesday it would settle a significant portion, if not all, of its outstanding debts to hospitals amounting to P27 billion within 90 days.
“I’m confident that within 90 days from today, a bulk or majority, if not all, of the P27 billion will be paid off,” PhilHealth President and CEO Emmanuel Ledesma Jr. said during the House deliberations on the proposed Department of Health budget for 2024.
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“Hopefully, that will make the hospitals and the doctors happy,” she said.
Ledesma said the state health insurer will implement the debit-credit payment mechanism to settle unpaid hospital claims.
“We will use that to make sure our reconciliation will be accelerated again,” he said.
The debit-credit payment method involves the payment of 60% of the total applicable healthcare facility receivables, which is subject to a 2% expanded withholding tax for private eligible facilities.
The remaining 40% of the total amount of claims will be paid after eligible private facilities have fully complied with claims processing requirements and a full reconciliation of the initially paid 60% of the total receivables, subject to a 2% expanded withholding tax applicable.
Rep. Wilbert Lee (AGRI Partylist) criticized PhilHealth for failing to pay hospitals despite having high investible funds and net income.
“Many hospitals are no longer accepting indigent patients because PhilHealth owes them a significant amount, and many staff and frontliners are not receiving their salaries due to the insurer’s huge debt,” Lee said in Filipino.
PhilHealth is a government corporation attached to the Department of Health. Under the proposed budget for 2024, the DOH will be getting P311.3 billion, or 3% lower than its budget under the 2023 General Appropriations Act.