WESTERN Visayas Medical Center (WVMC) in Mandurriao, Iloilo City is now contracted to provide PhilHealth Z-Benefit packages for Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) at P550,000 , Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) at P250,000 and Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) at P350,000 starting August 23, 2019.
“With the increasing number of patients diagnosed with catastrophic illnesses and with the hike in day-to-day expenses, PhilHealth continues to provide benefits for expensive treatment and prolonged hospitalization of our members. We also keep on encouraging Health Care Institutions to partner with us and be a contracted provider of Z-Benefits” said Janet A. Monteverde, Acting Regional Vice-President of PhilHealth-6.
Initially, WVMC is also contracted for Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL) at P500,000, Breast Cancer at P100,000, Prostate Cancer at P100,000 and Selected Orthopedic Implants Z-Benefits.
The Z-Benefit packages include the mandatory services for the totality of care that are essential for the treatment of the condition, hospital services such as accommodation, medicines, laboratories and professional fee and other services or alternative guideline recommendations that may be needed by the patient.
Moreover, the No Balance Billing (NBB) or “walang dagdag bayad” will be applicable to eligible Sponsored, Indigent, Lifetime, Senior Citizens, and Kasambahay members and their dependents in all designated government and private Health Care Institutions offering Z-Benefit packages.
“We want to lessen the out-of-the-pocket expenses of the members, especially the marginalized, and alleviate the emotional burden of the family not only by providing big case rate packages but also by ensuring that total quality care is achieved by the patients” added Monteverde.
Other than WVMC, there are three more facilities in Western Visayas providing Z-Benefits and these are: St. Paul’s Hospital (SPH) Iloilo for Kidney Transplantation at P600,000 and Peritoneal Dialysis at P270,000; The Medical City Iloilo (TMCI) for CABG; and Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) in Bacolod City for ALL, Breast CA, Prostate CA and Selected Orthopedic Implants.
The Z-Benefits was implemented by PhilHealth in 2012 to provide relevant financial risk protection against illnesses perceived as medically and economically catastrophic especially affecting Filipinos belonging to the marginalized sectors of the society.
The complete list of Z-Benefits and contracted facilities may be accessed in the official website of PhilHealth www.philhealth.gov.ph. (Public Affairs Unit – PRO 6/K. N. Alkonga)
