Is PhilHealth Worth It?

Is PhilHealth Worth It?

(Updated 5 March 2020)

I have probably had this question, “Is PhilHealth Worth It?” repeatedly asked more than a hundred times since I moved to the Philippines, full-time, in 2006.

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My answer is almost always a resounding yes, but a great many ex-pats will tend to disagree with me. This opinion generally seems from the attitude of most North Americans (at least those who actually even bother to HAVE health insurance) that to be worth anything. health insurance has to cover all expenses.  PhilHealth does NOT cover all costs involved with every sickness or surgery, but it is one hell of a lot better than having no health insurance at all … and when you get sick (not IF, but WHEN) you’ll be damn glad to have it.

PhilHealth is the Philippine government’s National Health Insurance Program.  It is a commercial corporation owned and backed by the government of the Philippines… similar in many ways to the US Postal Service.

Facts About PhilHealth:

It is for Filipino citizens only.

This is FALSE.  Philhealth is available to everyone in the Philippines, Filipino or foreign.married or single.

PhilHealth Is Worthless Because It Doesn’t Pay Everything.

This is FALSE. PhilHealth does not pay for outpatient care, such as visits to your doctor’s office. It also does not pay for prescriptions.  But if you have to be hospitalized, especially for an operation (which can cost thousands of dollars US), it’s really hard to beat the benefits of PhilHealth.

I’m Living On A Fixed Income, PhilHealth Costs Too Much.

This is just patent NONSENSE.  For most members, the cost of PhilHealth is only P3600 a year.   That works out to less than $6.00 a month … or, perhaps 5 or 6 San Miguel’s.  If you wake up one morning to the pain like my colleague Dave describes below, you’re surely going to wish you had skipped a couple of beers in the interest of your continued breathing.

Even if you are in the category of foreigners who have to pay the whopping P15,000 per year, remember that’s less than $25 a month … and when you need it (again, when, not if) you will get back more than you paid in, for sure.

Trust Me, I Have 20 Years Experience On This

I’ve lost count of the number of family members who have been hi=sopitalized over the years I have lived here in the Philippines.  I have often “helped” with the costs of settling their bills and getting them released from the hospital.

PhilHealth has always contributed, often a substantial amount, like P20,000 or P30,000 or even P40,00.

There is always an additional balance due for items PhilHealth didn’t cover, but if you think about getting back P30,000 for an investment of P3600a year, it sounds like a pretty solid investment to me.

Here’s a Real-World, Up To Date Review Of How PhilHealth helped This Ex-pat.

Go read it, I’ll wait right here for you.

So now that you have heard exactly how PhilHealth helped mu colleague Dave, tight now in 2020, what do you think?

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Is PhilHealth Worth It?