• CHERYL G. CRUZ
Philippine Health Insurance Corporation officials are calling on Negrenses to register in its Yakap (Yaman ng Kalusugan Program) and avail of the new and expanded primary care benefit package.
This package includes free checkup, laboratory tests, cancer screening tests, and P20,000 worth of free outpatient medicines under the GAMOT, or Guaranteed and Accessible Medications for Outpatient Treatment, for each member and dependent/s.
PhilHealth-Bacolod head Edgar Yocariza, in a press conference Aug. 29, said that 954,644 PhilHealth members and their dependents in Bacolod and Negros Occidental have registered in Yakap, as of July 31 this year.
There are 3,021,262 PhilHealth members and dependents in the highly-urbanized city and in the province, so the Yakap registration is only 29.26 percent, Yocariza said, adding this is the second lowest in Western Visayas, next to Iloilo, which logged a 21.42 percent population coverage.
Highest, so far, is Aklan with 348,108 registrants, or 55.31 percent. Regionwide, 2,686,017 residents, or 32.75 percent, have registered to Yakap in the first seven months of this year, PhilHealth6 records show.
Yocariza encouraged other PhilHealth members to register, adding that even beneficiaries of the Bacolod City Comprehensive Health Program (BacCHP) can be covered by Yakap for additional benefits.
Every single Filipino is welcome in the Yakap, like government and private employees, kasambahay, indigents, persons with disability, self-earning individuals or professional practitioners, PhilHealth lifetime members, or those retired, at least 60 years old with 120 months contribution, beneficiaries of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), overseas Filipino workers, solo parents, senior citizens, and children 20 years old and below.
“Our arms are open to all, and joining is as simple as registering at an accredited Yakap clinic or provider,” Dr. Mary Ellen Grace Bolido said in her presentation. Registration can also be done via the eGov App, the PhilHealth Member Portal, or the PhilHealth offices.
There are 49 accredited Yakap package providers in Negros Occidental, including three in Bacolod – the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital, the Bacolod City Health Office, and the Medisense Laboratory Center Inc. along Burgos Street.
There are no Yakap providers yet in La Castellana, Moises Padilla, and Don Salvador Benedicto, the PhilHealth said.
“We know that worrying about health can be a heavy burden, so we’ve created a program that proactively cares for you and your family, bringing you peace of mind and a future free from worry,” the state-owned health insurance company stressed.
For more details, those interested may call PhilHealth’s 24/7 touch points at (02) 866-225-88, or at mobile numbers (Smart) 0998-857-2957, 0968-865-4670, (Globe) 0917-1275987 or 0917-1109812. | CGC
