Malacañang said President Marcos has ordered the extension of the filing period for hospital reimbursement claims to 120 days, a move aimed at easing delays in PhilHealth payments and helping health facilities recover denied claims.

Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary Claire Castro said the decision came after discussions with the Department of Health (DOH) and PhilHealth, following reports of over P1 billion worth of return-to-hospital (RTH) claims and other reimbursements that were not immediately paid.

In a press briefing on Wednesday, Dec. 17, Castro said the extended period, called “claims flexibility,” gives hospitals more time to complete and submit the required documents.

“Pinag-utos din po ng Pangulo na i-extend ang maaaring period para makapag-claim ang ibang ospital… na-extend po ito up to 120 days (The President also ordered the extension of the period for hospitals to file their claims… it has been extended up to 120 days),” she said.

She added that the adjustment is meant to ensure PhilHealth and DOH can meet their obligations, provided hospitals comply with documentation requirements.

Castro said the DOH explained that many claims were denied or returned because hospitals failed to submit complete documents within the prescribed period.

“Ayon po sa DOH, mayroon po kasing date na dapat na maibigay ang claims ng mga ospital… at karamihan po sa ibang mga ospital ay hindi po agad nakakapagbigay ng kanilang mga dokumento (According to the DOH, there is a deadline for hospitals to submit their claims… and many hospitals fail to submit their documents on time),” she said.

“Basta po ang nais lang din po natin, ang mga ospital po ay makapagbigay ng kanilang mga dokumento sa tamang oras at panahon (What we want is for hospitals to submit their documents at the proper time and within the proper period),” she added.

Meanwhile, Castro said Malacañang has already directed the DOH to address record-keeping issues, following reports of denied claims and inventories of expired medicines and supplies.

“Ang sinabi po diyan ay ayusin ang kanilang mga records at nakausap po natin mismo ang pamunuan ng DOH (What was instructed is for them to fix their records, and we have spoken directly with the DOH leadership),” she said.

She added that the DOH is now submitting the necessary documents to resolve the issues.