Marcos wants PhilHealth to prove bigger contributions mean more benefits

Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday said he wanted to see proof that the increased contributions to the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) would mean more benefits.

Earlier, Health Secretary Ted Herbosa appealed to the president to suspend the 5 percent increase in PhilHealth contributions. The proposal is still under study by the president.

“I’ll see. I’ll tell them: Okay, if you’re going to increase it, show the other side of that. What will be the increase in services? What will be able to cover? What more will you be able to cover?’” Marcos said, speaking partly in Filipino in an exclusive interview on GMA Networks’s “24 Oras.”

Marcos said it was a matter of weighing costs and benefits.

READ: INQToday: Marcos studying suspension of PhilHealth contribution hike

Asked if he was inclined towards either suspending the contribution hike or not, Marcos said it was hard to tell.

“It’s very hard to quantify. It’s very hard to quantify health, you know? How much is it worth to you? It’s worth different things to different people,” Marcos said.