Poor families in Navotas to receive health perks

Navotas Mayor Toby Tiangco has signed a memorandum of agreement with Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) and pharmaceutical firm GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) enrolling an initial 1,000 indigent Navotas families to the Pinoy Health Pass.

Municipal health officer Dr. Hector David said the Pinoy Health Pass would strengthen the health program of Navotas and help address their problem with respiratory and water-borne diseases.

The Pinoy Health Pass is a health-insurance-for-the-poor program sponsored by PhilHealth, GSK and various local government units.

Under the program, cardholders and their family members (18 years old and below; 60 years and above) are entitled to free medical services and procedures at any PhilHealth-accredited hospitals and health centers.

Currently, Navotas has nine PhilHealth accredited health centers and one clinic located in 14 barangays.

Without a full service hospital, residents are admitted at the nearby Tondo General Hospital in the City of Manila.

Free medical services and procedures like room and board, prescription drugs and biologicals, surgeon’s fees, anesthesiologist’s fees, operating room fees and surgical family planning procedures are some of the hospitalization benefits given to sponsored families.

Members are also allowed free primary consultation and free laboratory examinations for complete blood count, chest X-ray, stool exam, urinalysis and sputum microscopy for tuberculosis suspects and cancer screening procedures – all of which belong to the out-patient benefit package.