IF there is one good thing to have come out of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, it is the expediting of the programs and initiatives under the Universal Health Care (UHC) program of the Duterte administration.
This was according to the Department of Health (DOH), saying the pandemic has forced the Philippine government to hasten the programs institutionalized under the UHC.
“The response to the COVID-19 pandemic even expedited several UHC-related initiatives, and these initiatives further strengthened the integration of our local health systems into province-wide and city-wide health systems,” said Health Secretary Francisco Duque III during the “Duterte Legacy Summit” held yesterday at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City.
“Gradually, the reforms we have set are paving the way to improve the health system in the Philippines, placing every Juan and Juana at the center of it all,” he also said.
Despite the pandemic, Duque noted how they were able to embark on health infrastructure projects for primary care facilities, which are the first point of contact in the healthcare system.
Duque said they were able to fund the development of 7,796 barangay health stations; 3,259 rural health units; and 34 polyclinics, while also finishing the development of 1,798 LGU hospitals and 639 DOH hospitals.
He said the pandemic also led to the creation of other health care facilities, such as 14 quarantine facilities, 34 treatment and rehabilitation centers, and seven DOH regional offices.
Duque said the pandemic also led to the national government adequately augmenting and supporting LGU capacity in delivering health services.
He said it includes the deployment of Human Resources for Health to priority areas, including the Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDAs), with an average of 27,400 healthcare workers per year from 2017 until 2021.
The health chief also said that the pandemic brought forth the launching of the DOH’s telemedicine service program.
“This program played a gargantuan role in delivering accessible healthcare service during this pandemic. Since it was launched in 2020, it has already attended to more than 379,900 consultations,” noted Duque.
The DOH head also said the UHC has already resulted to the automatic enrollment of all Filipinos in the National Health Insurance Program under the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).
As of 2022, Duque said 100 percent of the Filipino population or over 111 million are already covered by the National Health Insurance Program.
It was back in February 2019 when the Republic Act No. 11223 or the Universal Health Care Act was signed into law by President Duterte.
Subsequently, the UHC Law’s implementing rules and regulations was signed on October 2019, which initiated the major health reforms undertaken by the DOH and PhilHealth.
