MANILA, Philippines — Three-term Senator now Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda urged Congress to look into the status of the implementation of the Universal Health Care Act, under Republic Act No. 11223, to ensure its full implementation two years after its enactment.
The law automatically enrolls all Filipinos in the National Health Insurance Program and guarantees equitable access to quality and affordable healthcare services and protection against financial risk.
“Now, more than any other time, people need easy access to quality and affordable health care services due them. Two years after the approval of the Universal Health Care Act, many Filipinos are still desperately trying to gain access to the assistance intended for them and some are still suffering from the inequity in our healthcare system,” she said.
The co-sponsor of the law recalled that, within two years from its enactment, the law mandates PhilHealth to implement a comprehensive outpatient benefit, including outpatient drug benefit and emergency medical services in accordance with the recommendations of the Health Technology Assessment Council (HTAC) which was also created by the same law.
“Given the current pandemic that has taken a toll on our healthcare system, many Filipinos who fall ill are forced to receive medical treatment as outpatients since COVID-19 patients or those critically ill are given priority in hospitals or medical centers,” she shared.
“Then there are those who fear being exposed to the virus if they go to the hospital. It is thus important that the intent of the law is carried out,” she added.
The former Senator also said that “at the same time, while we have provided Filipinos with access to full health assistance coverage, we also have to make sure that healthcare facilities are available and fully equipped and that there are a sufficient number of health workers to effectively cater to the medical and health needs of our estimated 109 million population.”
Legarda further stated that the local government units, through their respective health boards, are mandated to exercise administrative and technical supervision over such health facilities and health human resources.
In the Lone District of Antique, which Legarda currently represents in the House of Representatives, the construction, rehabilitation and expansion of the nine (9) local hospitals are currently ongoing under the DOH Health Facilities Enhancement Program.
New medical equipment such as X-rays, ECG machine, ultrasound machine, among others, have also been provided and 28 barangay health stations have been constructed and are now operational to give primary health services to the Antiqueños.
Furthermore, the DOH Medical Assistance for Indigent Patients, as well as the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) under the Department of Social Welfare and Development, are also made available in all public health facilities in the province.
Through Legarda’s efforts, the province of Antique has been included in the pilot run of the Universal Health Care Act after its enactment.
Legarda explained that the law does not only provide assistance in terms of service and financial coverage to patients, or for the improvement of health-related infrastructure all over the country. The two-year-old law also provides assistance to our healthcare workers for their career advancement to ensure that they are able to efficiently perform their duties.
“The benefits the Filipino people get from the UHC Law, or RA 11223, will be deemed useless if we do not have health facilities and infrastructure that can keep up with technological advancements and cope with the challenges of new and emerging diseases,” said Legarda, who also cautioned that “going to hospitals or rural health units without professionals who are adequately trained is like putting yourself at greater health risk.”
“A healthy country is a productive country. In light of our fight against this unprecedented health crisis, we have to bolster the efficiency and effectivity of the health sector as part of our vital investments in our human capital,” she concluded.
The former Senator is also the principal author of Republic Act No. 10606, or the National Health Insurance Act, which ensures affordable and accessible healthcare coverage available to all citizens, especially to the poorest Filipinos, under the PhilHealth System.
As former Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Finance, Legarda sponsored the augmentation of the PhilHealth budget by P3 billion under the 2017 and 2018 national budgets to ensure that health services are also extended to indigent non-member patients through a Point of Service (POS) Program.
NOTE: All photos were taken before the pandemic.