Universal Health Care: Roadmap to 2016
MIND YOUR BODY By Willie T. Ong, MD (The Philippine Star) Updated
October 23, 2012 12:00 AM Comments (0)
Since June of 2010, the Department of Health, under Secretary Enrique T.
Ona, has focused its efforts on attaining Universal Health Care for all
Filipinos.
Universal Health Care has three strategic thrusts, namely, 1) the
expansion in PhilHealth enrollment and benefits; 2) the improvement of
government hospitals, health centers, and other facilities; and 3) the
attainment of DOH's health-related Millennium Development Goals,
including a reduction in maternal mortality and infant mortality rates,
through the provision of health services.
These three goals are among the hardest to achieve, but their impact on
the lives of every Filipino is far-reaching. For each of the country's
health problems, the Department of Health has mapped out its strategic
plans. However, implementing these plans is easier said than done. If
the solutions to our health problems were easy, then these diseases
should have been eradicated years ago.
Within two years, here are some of the things the DOH has achieved for
universal health care:
• More people enrolled in PhilHealth. Starting 2011, the national
government has paid for the PhilHealth membership of 5.3 million poorest
families, comprising almost 25 million Filipinos, as identified by the
National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction of the
Department of Social Welfare and Development. For 2012, the premium
subsidy of these families was increased from P3.5 billion in 2011 to P
12.5 billion. These poor families are entitled to no-balance-billing (or
walang dagdag bayad) when they are admitted in a ward bed in any
government facility.
• Highest budget ever for DOH. Under Secretary Ona's term, the DOH
received the biggest budget increase, which is P42 billion for 2012 and
P53 billion for 2013. This figure is more than twice the DOH budget of
P23 billion in 2009. Secretary Ona once said, "As a surgeon, I know how
much our people need hospital care and medicines. I will lobby for the
DOH to get its needed budget."
• Improvement of health facilities. The DOH is in the process of
enhancing and upgrading health facilities to ensure that people have
access to quality health care. The national government has allotted
P13.5 billion for 2013 for the improvement of the national and local
government hospitals, health centers, and barangay health stations.
Secretary Ona has also started the National Hospital Reform Program,
wherein he has identified 25 to 30 DOH-retained hospitals for
modernization through private-public partnership (PPP). Seven of these
hospitals will be upgraded to give specialized care in heart surgery,
oncology, and organ transplantation, so that patients who will need
these services need not come to Manila or Cebu anymore.
• Attainment of the Millennium Development Goals. The DOH has employed
more nurses and health workers through the "RN Heals" volunteer nurses
program. Batch 1 deployed 10,000 nurses, batch 2 had 11,500 nurses, and
the latest batch 3 for 2012 will recruit 10,000 nurses and 3,000
midwives. Moreover, the DOH has deployed thousands of community health
teams. These teams of health workers travel house to house to teach
people about vaccination, cleanliness, maternal and child care, and
common diseases.
Seeing how the poor cannot buy their medicines, the DOH has also started
a new program of giving free maintenance medicines to poor patients.
Called the ComPack (complete treatment packs), this program has a budget
of P500 million a year.
To reduce the deaths of our children from severe diarrhea and pneumonia,
the DOH has included in the national immunization program the rotavirus
and pneumococcal vaccination initially for 700,000 infants belonging to
the 5.2 million NHTS families, the first country in Southeast Asia to do so.
Because of the department's efforts, the country is now closer to
achieving Universal Health Care by 2016. The DOH has laid the groundwork
for making this dream a reality.
The health department's vision is to achieve the following results:
•All Filipinos especially poor families will be enrolled in PhilHealth.
•PhilHealth support value for the patient's medical expenses will
increase from 34% in 2009 to 60% by 2016.
•Quality care will be provided in public facilities and public hospitals.
•The DOH will reach out to the grassroots. Poor families will be
informed and guided by community health teams for their health needs.
•Every family will have access to essential, quality, and affordable
health services, both in the prevention and treatment of diseases.
In the words of Secretary Ona, "The government cannot achieve this dream
alone. Universal Health Care will not be realized without the people's
commitment and partnership. We ask you, the private sector, the media,
and the people, to continue working with us with the same enthusiasm and
drive to help uplift the lives of the poorest members of our society."
--
---------------------------------------------------------------------
CARLOS ANI - International Microfinance Consultant - SEEDFINANCE Corporation Chairman
Mailing address: PO Box 90 UPLB Los Banos Laguna, Philippines 4031
Emails: carlosani@gmail.com , carlosani@seedfinance.net
Landline Phone: +63495010127 (PLDT)
Cellphone Numbers: +63926277-8044 (TM)
My Websites:
CARLOSANI.COM - http://www.carlosani.com
SEEDFINANCE Corporation - http://www.seedfinance.net
DEVJOBS - http://www.devjobsmail.com
PHILDEVFINANCE - http://phildevfinance.posterous.com
http://phildevfinance.blogspot.com
FORWARD PHILIPPINES - http://forwardphilippines.wordpress.com/
My News Clippings - http://www.myclipps.posterous.com
Family website - http://www.anifamily.net
Skype name: carlosaniph
--------------------------------------------------------------------
