‘Senate backs PhilHealth premium cut to 3 percent’

MANILA, Philippines — Amid calls to reduce Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) member contributions from five percent to four, Sen. JV Ejercito revealed yesterday that the Senate is supportive of lowering it even further down to three percent.

“Let’s see if it is possible,” Ejercito said, adding the Senate is also waiting on PhilHealth for its actuarial computation on the supposed contribution of its members.

“My proposal is four percent (contribution). Also, if it’s really possible – I’m also waiting for the computation, because actuarial computation is difficult to handle – I’m also waiting for PhilHealth, if they can, the Senate is probably going toward supporting the three percent (contribution), but let’s see,” he said in an interview over dzBB.

The PhilHealth contribution rate is the percentage of a person’s earnings that goes toward paying their PhilHealth premiums to be covered under health insurance. Under the Universal Health Care (UHC) Act, this rate is set to go up by half percent each year, starting in 2021, until it gets to five percent in 2024 and 2025.

Earlier, Senate Minority Leader Koko Pimentel III scrutinized the premium rate contribution of PhilHealth under Senate Bill 2620, also known as an Act Amending Republic Act 11223 or the UHC Act. The proposed legislation seeks to lower the PhilHealth contribution from five percent to four percent, to lighten the financial burden of the Filipino people.

Pimentel asked if the premium rate could further be lowered to three percent.

“I think you could afford it. That way, we can give our people some respite – the direct contributors – by lowering the premium rate,” he said, noting that the premium rate contribution in 2020 was only three percent.

Ejercito said, “The UHC was passed in the 19th Congress, and there is a need to adapt to the situation. We did not anticipate the pandemic. To ease (Filipinos) burden, the main point now is for us to lower the contribution to four percent. We are now in the period of amendments that, hopefully, we can pass this coming week.”

During a public hearing of the Senate committee on health chaired by Sen. Bong Go on July 30, PhilHealth president and chief executive officer Emmanuel Ledesma Jr. confirmed that PhilHealth has a P500-billion reserve fund that can cover all the benefits of its members, including the additional health benefits previously announced by President Marcos in his recent State of the Nation Address on July 22.

“When will you recommend to the President to lower the PhilHealth fee or premium? Would you recommend it?” Go asked Ledesma, who vowed to immediately study the reduction in the premium contribution of its members.

“Actually, yes, especially after this very nice hearing that just happened, we will do it immediately,” Ledesma replied. “As early as this afternoon, I will convene our team and we will recommend a reduction in the premium rates, and contribution rates to President Marcos. Immediately, to answer your question.”