The aggregate net income of health maintenance organizations (HMOs) nearly doubled in the first quarter of the year, primarily driven by a decrease in expenses, the Insurance Commission (IC) said yesterday.
The IC reported in a statement that the net income of HMOs in the first quarter amounted to P1.56 billion, 95.57 percent up from the year ago level of P797.6 million.
“This substantial increase in the industry’s net income, however, is primarily driven by a 9.24 percent decrease in total expenses, year-on-year. That was, in turn, driven by a 15.62 percent decrease in healthcare benefits and claims from P9 billion in the first quarter 2020 to P7.6 billion,” Dennis Funa, insurance commissioner, said.
HMOs’ total equity likewise increased by 94.15 percent to P15.14 billion from P7.8 billion a year ago.
“According to the unaudited reports, this increase in total equity was due to an increase in retained earnings, which comprise 77.9 percent of HMOs’ total equity,” Funa said.
HMO assets grew 31.77 percent year-on-year to P66.56 billion from P50.51 billion.
“The 31.77 percent growth in the HMOs’ assets is primarily driven by a corresponding growth in cash and cash equivalents that make up 53.92 percent of the industry’s assets,” Funa said.
Meanwhile, the industry’s total liabilities increased by 20.38 percent to P51.42 billion from P42.72 billion in the same period a year ago.
The IC also reported that the HMO industry’s total revenues slightly contracted by 2.89 percent, from P13.17 billion in the first quarter of 2020 to P12.79 billion in the first three months 2021, due to a slight decrease in membership and enrollees’ fees.
“As the IC has envisioned, the HMO industry has increasingly become a pillar of the Philippine economy serving our fellow Filipinos, especially during the pandemic. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic until the end of the first half of this year, HMOs have already paid P3.98 billion in COVID-19-related claims, which constitutes 48 percent of the P8.25 billion aggregate COVID-19-related claims paid,” Funa said. – Angela Celis
