Reinforcing the government’s commitment to accessible and inclusive healthcare, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) have joined forces to enhance healthcare support for underprivileged Filipino students and their families.
CHED, led by Secretary Popoy De Vera, and PhilHealth, headed by President Edwin Mercado, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the integration of PhilHealth coverage for beneficiaries of the Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES) and Tulong Dunong Program (TDP) under CHED-UniFAST, led by Executive Director Ryan Estevez. The agreement also mobilizes state universities and colleges (SUCs) as contact centers for health services.
“We welcome the opportunity to work with PhilHealth in implementing projects that will help more Filipinos, particularly the underserved, access quality health services—one of the priority projects under the Marcos administration,” De Vera said.
Through this partnership, CHED aims to ensure that students from low-income backgrounds have access to essential health services, while PhilHealth seeks to expand its coverage to a larger segment of the youth population.
CHED and PhilHealth are working together to provide priority access to affordable primary healthcare services for disadvantaged students in SUCs and their families.
In a statement issued on March 27, CHED said the partnership will cover approximately 500,000 CHED-UniFAST TES and TDP beneficiaries, as they belong to the poorest households listed in the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Listahan.
“Our public universities and colleges collectively account for half of all higher education enrollments. The more than 200 public universities serve over two million students,” De Vera said.
“By mobilizing our state universities, we can enroll more Filipinos in PhilHealth and further expand access to healthcare services,” he added.
Meanwhile, Mercado emphasized that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s directive is to continue and expand PhilHealth's services.
“One of our main focuses is primary healthcare, or ang konsepto ng Konsulta,” Mercado explained, adding that the agreement with CHED and UP Manila will help expedite and expand the enrollment of PhilHealth members in the Konsulta program.
CHED noted that the partnership will not only provide poor students and their families the opportunity to enroll in PhilHealth but also grant them access to primary healthcare services through PhilHealth’s Konsultasyong Sulit at Tama program.
The PhilHealth Konsulta Package is a comprehensive outpatient benefit that includes consultations, health screenings and assessments, laboratory tests, and medicines aimed at addressing healthcare gaps for underserved populations.
CHED further explained that the health facilities of SUCs will be assessed and accredited as Konsulta Providers to facilitate the efficient delivery of outpatient services.
The University of the Philippines Manila, which assisted and participated in the MOU signing between CHED and PhilHealth, will work with CHED to support and guide SUCs in meeting PhilHealth standards for accreditation as Konsulta Providers.
CHED added that the partnership will also streamline the claims process for Konsulta benefits and ensure the efficient utilization of payments within schools and through local government units (LGUs).