WITH public and private hospitals facing a surge in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) yesterday said it is seriously considering the release of a second tranche of emergency cash advance for the hospitals.
In a statement, PhilHealth said it is reviewing the hospitals’ use of funds from the first trancheof the interim reimbursement mechanism (IRM).
“The second wave of IRM funds will be made available to COVID-19 hospitals, specifically those in high concentration areas, such as the National Capital Region, Regions III (Central Luzon), IV-A (Calabarzon), and VII (Central Visayas), where bed capacity either reached full capacity or are in critical levels,” said PhilHealth.
“We will provide concerned hospitals with cash advance equivalent to three months’ worth of their claims based on their 2019 claims data,”it added.
PhilHealth said it has released P14.7 billion to 681 hospitals nationwide under its first wave of IRM.
Of the amount, almost P4.2 billion (29%) was released to NCR hospitals, followed by hospitals in Calabarzon with P1.2 billion (8%), and those in Central Luzon with P1.1 billion (7%).
With the said move, the agency said it also hopes to convince the public that its funds are adequate and available.
“All patients, whether COVID-19 or not, are assured of adequate care when needed without experiencing financial difficulty, as mandated by the Universal Health Care Law,” said PhilHealth.
