The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) has committed to streamlining the accreditation process for local government health facilities and speeding up reimbursements for medical services rendered.
Speaking at the High-Level Universal Health Care Summit on Thursday, November 5, PhilHealth Acting President and CEO Dr. Beverly Lorraine Ho outlined the agency’s primary objective for local health units.
“Our commitment to LGUs is simple: fewer hurdles to get accredited and faster payment once services are delivered,” Dr. Ho said. “The goal here is to have a financing system that fits how local facilities actually run.”
The summit, hosted at the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for the Western Pacific, convened health executives and local chief executives to discuss optimizing pooled resources in the Special Health Fund and enhancing healthcare delivery across local government units (LGUs).
During the discussions, Acting Health Secretary Edwin Mercado called on both national and local leaders to leverage these pooled funds to bolster primary care networks, upgrade facility management, and streamline patient referral systems.
To support these regional health priorities, WHO Representative to the Philippines Dr. Eunyoung Ko shared that the organization is currently assisting in the creation of 82 provincial health profiles designed to pinpoint gaps in healthcare services.
Meanwhile, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, who serves as the interim national president of the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP), emphasized that the true benchmark of reform lies in the direct experience of citizens.
“Ultimately, the success of Universal Health Care will not be measured by the policies or commitments we make, but by whether our people can actually feel the difference — in the health centers they visit, and in the quality of care they receive when they need it most,” Mayor Belmonte stated.