In light of Rabies Awareness Month, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) urged the public to vaccinate their pets to prevent rabies infections and rabies-related injuries and deaths.

In a statement, PhilHealth acting president and chief executive officer Emmanuel R. Ledesma, Jr. stated that "addressing rabies begins with prevention, and this can be done by ensuring that pets like dogs are properly vaccinated against rabies."

He also asked the public to seek immediate medical attention for animal bites. Ledesma stated that the agency, since 2012 has been offering an Animal Bite Treatment Package (ABTP) that defrays the cost of post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) treatment to all Filipinos.

The ABTP is worth P3,000 pesos and covers the cost of providing PEP services such as vaccines, immunoglobulin, antibiotics, and supplies. It primarily covers dog bites, but persons bitten by other animals may be covered.

"These include domestic animals such as cats and livestock such as cows, pigs, horses, and goats. Bites from wild animals like bats and monkeys are also covered by the ABTP," PhilHealth said.

Ledesma pointed out that the public should not hesitate to get medical care after getting bitten by animals.

"The treatment of animal bites are covered by PhilHealth, so the families of bite victims should not be worried about medical costs," he said.

"It is very important that rabies is either ruled out or detected early. A majority of rabies-related deaths occur when bite victims do not get diagnosed immediately and are not given the appropriate post-bite treatment," he stressed.

He also mentioned that close to 300 Filipinos died from rabies in 2022, and all of these deaths could have been prevented with the right care.