UP-PGH is now a contracted facility for Z benefits
THE COUNTRY’S oldest government teaching hospital is now ready to provide the special benefits package for members of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) who are diagnosed with colon and rectum cancers.
Through a memorandum of agreement signed with PhilHealth recently in Pasig City, the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH) has formalized its commitment to be the first contracted provider of the Z Benefits for colorectal cancer.
The signing ceremony took place at the Chardonnay by Astoria on the occasion of PhilHealth’s 21st anniversary. Signatories to the MOA were PhilHealth president and chief executive officer Alexander A. Padilla and UPPGH deputy director for fiscal services Dr. Margarita Luna.
Under the agreement, the UP-PGH shall make available the benefit packages for colon cancer Stage I to II (low risk) worth P150,000 up to Stage II (high risk)-III worth P300,000 to PhilHealth members who pass the selections criteria. The Z benefit rate for the entire course of treatment for rectum cancer Stages I to III is P150,000 to P400,000.
At the same time, it shall implement the No Balance Billing (NBB) Policy to members under the Sponsored and Indigent programs as well as to kasambahay and iGroup members. The NBB, which enforces that no other amount shall be collected from the member beyond what PhilHealth provides for, shall also be applied to members who are not covered due to lack of qualifying contributions, and to non-members who were assessed and classified as belonging to Class C-3 or D and enrolled under the Point-of-Care program.
The UP-PGH also agreed to implement the ceiling amount of P230,000 as maximum co-payment for colon cancer, and P300,000 for rectum cancer for PhilHealth members and their dependents who are classified as charity patients Classes 1 and 2, as well as to members with income of less than P50,000 per household per year.
“PhilHealth is committed to provide accessible healthcare services to our members that is why we are thankful to UP-PGH for this partnership, being our first contracted hospital for the Z Benefits for colon and rectum cancers. I would also like to thank our partner-healthcare providers for helping us achieve our mandate. Indeed, we can say that our government is doing its job in providing quality care to all Filipinos,” said Padilla.
The UP-PGH is likewise contracted to provide four other Z Benefits packages, namely, Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG), Surgery for Total Correction of Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF), patch repair of Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) and the Z MORPH (Mobility, Orthosis, Rehabilitation, Prosthesis Help).