Senate bill filed to suspend PhilHealth contribution hike in 2021

Sen. Imee Marcos. (Screen grab/Senate PRIB file photo)

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Imee Marcos filed Monday a bill seeking to suspend the increase in premium rate contributions of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) this year.

Under Senate Bill No. 1966, the scheduled increase in the payment of premium contributions of 3.50 percent, as provided in Section 10 of Republic Act No. 11223 or the Universal Health Care Act, shall be suspended in the year 2021.

The bill states that the scheduled increase in premium contributions shall resume in 2022 with the supposed suspended 3.50 percent increase for 2021.

“Section 10 of the said Act provides for a scheduled increase in premium contributions, on a per year basis. However, due to the current situation, in the wake of a pandemic, it is but appropriate to suspend such increase of premium contributions because it will only impose an additional burden to contributors during this period of overwhelming economic and financial difficulty,” Marcos said in the bill’s explanatory note.

The UHC Act, mandates increases in member premiums by increments of 0.5 percent every year, starting 2021 until it reaches the 5-percent limit in 2025.

For 2021, the premium rate will increase to 3.5 percent of monthly basic salary from 3 percent in the previous year.

Despite calls for suspension of the hike, PhilHealth said it would start collecting the mandated hike in members’ contributions this month.

JPV