ECOP rejects PhilHealth contribution hike
The Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) is strongly opposing the proposed increase in premium contributions to the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) starting next year, and instead urged the government agency to address the need to prioritize improvement in services.
ECOP President Sergio R. Ortiz-Luis Jr., in a radio interview last Tuesday, Nov. 28, expressed dismay at the scheduled hike in the contribution rate by January 2024, citing the numerous complaints allegedly made against PhilHealth's services, and urging the national insurer to revise its regulations.
“Napakaraming reklamo sa PhilHealth (there are so many complaints against PhilHealth),” Ortiz-Luis Jr. declared, emphasizing the employers group's basis to question the proposed increase.
“Dapat gawin dyan sa PhilHealth, revamp, baguhin uli ang rules nila… Sayang lang kontribusyon. Marami nang tao ang nagrereklamo. COVID lang yata binabayaran eh…. Ngayon halos walang pakinabang ang tao. Dapat i-review yan, dapat imbestigahin yan bakit ganyan,” he asserted.
[PhilHealth needs revamping and the rules need changing…. Contributions just go to waste. Many people are already complaining. It seems only COVID (cases) are being paid…. Nowadays it’s of little use to people. It needs to be reviewed, investigated.]
Unless the law is amended, member contributions to PhilHealth are set to increase in January in accordance with the Universal Healthcare Law, after two previous hikes had been postponed, according to the agency.
Based on the schedule, the contribution rate will be increased to five percent from the current four percent as part of PhilHealth’s plan to expand its members’ benefits.
In contrast, Ortiz-Luis said employers are agreeable to the scheduled increase in worker contribution to the Pag-IBIG Fund next year.
He said the savings and housing loan agency has postponed its slated increase three times upon the employers’ request, so ECOP in turn is accepting the contribution hike.
“Tatlong beses na ni-request namin, tatlong beses ‘pinospone’ yan. Ngayon yung adjustment tatlong beses pinospone, pumayag na kami. Nag-usap kami pero even that hindi pa nai-implement. Gusto nila (Pag-IBIG) dadaan pa sila sa Malacanang, hihingi sila ng permiso,” he explained.
[We requested for the postponement three times and were heard three times. Now following the third postponement, we’ve agreed. We talked about it but the increase has not yet been implemented. They want to go and ask Malacanang for permission first.]
Pag-IBIG earlier said the higher contribution would start by January as approved by the board of trustees. It said that before January, it would again confirm with Malacanang about pushing through with the increase.
Last March, Pag-IBIG suspended the contribution hike that was supposed to take effect this year since workers and business owners were still recovering from the impact of the pandemic.
By January, a member’s contribution would on average rise from P100 to P200, with the employer contributing the same amount.