Tuesday, January 01, 2008 Guv pushes for a local health insurance By Edmund B. Sestoso
NEGROS Oriental Governor Emilio Macias II intends to push for the coming up of a local provincial health insurance in the province rather than being dependent on the Philippine Health Insurance.
The governor has called the initiative as Provincial Health Insurance of Negros Oriental (Phino) where he said the initial target beneficiaries are the identified indigents in the towns and cities of the province.
He said Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Dante Domingo, who extended his help in the development of the concept and the scheme, assured Macias about the matter.
The governor pointed out that special attention would be placed on the establishment of health insurance, which is designed to have all indigent patients in the province covered by free hospitalization services.
Macias chided the existing Philhealth, saying that benefits covered are "very meager, not even enough to cover appendectomy."
The problem is compounded by the policy of Philhealth not to recognize practically all the district hospitals whose doctors are not accredited by it, he added.
Macias also said the policy means that indigent patients confined in district hospitals cannot avail of the Philhealth insurance.
He said they did not accredit practically all district hospitals in the province and it is only Negros Oriental Provincial Hospital (NOPH) who is recognized.
Late this year, various orientations and seminars were already made to brief health stakeholders on the benefits of Phino.
Specifics of the program are not yet finalized, but his administration intends to find ways to give more benefits than Philhealth to indigents, Macias ended.
