THE PHILIPPINE Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) has disbursed over P592 million of total claims paid to the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI), as of May 21.
“In line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s priorities, I visited and met with partner health care facilities to personally see how the public’s needs are being met, and ensure we are able to pay the benefits claims,” Acting PhilHealth President and Chief Executive Officer Edwin M. Mercado said in Filipino in a statement on Wednesday.
The disbursements were in line with the state insurer’s RISE30 initiative which aims to expedite claims processing and payment to ensure Filipinos are able to receive PhilHealth’s full benefits and services.
As of the first five months, PhilHealth has paid P161 million for hemodialysis procedures alone at NKTI.
In 2024, hemodialysis was the top paid medical procedure in the country.
PhilHealth said it has been enhancing Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Stage 5 benefits since 2023, with the expanded coverage for hemodialysis sessions to 156 sessions per year from 90 previously.
The state insurer also increased the Z Benefit Package for Peritoneal Dialysis, which now offers financial assistance of up to P1.2 million, while the Z Benefit coverage for Kidney Transplantation has been raised to over P2 million from P600,000. – Aaron Michael C.
