BUDGET and Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman has approved the release of P25,157,547,000 (P25.16 billion) to the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) to cover the one-year health insurance premiums of 8,385,849 qualified Filipino indigents enrolled at PhilHealth.
The Special Allotment Release Order (SARO) was approved by the Budget Secretary on 23 May 2023.
“President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. mandated his cabinet to ensure that Filipinos are provided with affordable health care. Pinamulat sa atin ng pandemya ang kahalagahan ng mas matatag na health care system, kaya’t pinagsisikapan po natin na ilapit ito sa ating mga kababayan, lalong-lalo na po sa mga higit na nangangailangan,” Secretary Pangandaman said.
Indigent persons are those that have no visible means of income, or whose income is insufficient for family subsistence, as identified by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), based on specific criteria.
The fund will be sourced from authorized allotments in the FY 2023 General Appropriations Act (GAA) pursuant to Republic Act (RA) 11936.
To recall, the DBM approved the release of a total of P42,931,355,000 to cover one-year health insurance premiums of over 8.5 million senior citizens nationwide on 4 April 2023.
