Indigent folks get PhilHealth cards

By BONG PEDALINO
October 3, 2010

MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte  –  As expected, poor people from near and far trooped to the city gym here on Saturday, October 2, to get their Philhealth identification cards as part of a simultaneous, nationwide activity to truly attain universal coverage on state-backed health benefits.

The activity was a fulfillment of President Benigno Aquino’s promise during his first state of the nation address (SONA) for Philhealth coverage of the nation’s poorest of the poor within three years.

As early as eight o’clock in the morning, Philhealth personnel began entertaining the horde of people coming in, most of them already bringing with them their filled-up registration forms, while others were just given the same forms at the city gym.

Aside from Philhealth, personnel from other government agencies deeply involved with this project such as the Department of Health (DOH), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO), Department of Education (DepEd), and the City Health Units assisted in guiding the clients fill-up their forms, and in maintaining order in the crowded gym.

The DOH was the lead agency of the day’s activity, paying the premiums of the 1,000 new enrollees.

City Mayor Maloney Samaco, by around midday, led the actual distribution of the Philhealth cards, together with former provincial board member Jason Calva representing the provincial government.

Earlier, in his brief talk, Mayor Samaco called on the recipients to take good care of their individual cards and not lost it, so in the event of hospitalization they can avail of the stipulated health benefits.

Misael Paigan, Philhealth Service Office Manager, informed that in Maasin City, there were some 1,800 indigent families still wanting to be covered through Philhealth’s sponsorship program.

With the DOH-sponsored Philhealth members, only 800 remained, he added, suggesting that this balance will be covered during the next batch of a similar DOH-led registration.

City DOH representative Letty Tan disclosed that Health Secretary Enrique Ona thought of sponsoring the Philhealth cards following an incident during a routine visit to a barangay, in which he asked how many people already had Philhealth cards, and only a few raised their hands.