MANILA – Sa gitna ng tumataas na kaso ng human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections sa bansa, ipinahayag ng Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) na saklaw nito ang mga outpatient HIV/AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) na paggamot sa mga itinalagang HIV treatment facility.
“Our Outpatient HIV/AIDS Package, which is part of our Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)-related benefits covers up to ₱30,000 per year or ₱7,500 per quarter. Kasama po rito ang bayad para sa mga gamot, laboratory examinations, at professional fees ng providers para sa mga HIV/AIDS-related cases na kumpirmado ng Rapid HIV Diagnostic Algorithm (rHIVda) facilities, STD/AIDS Central Cooperative Laboratory (SACCL),o ng Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM),” ani PhilHealth acting president at chief executive officer Emmanuel R. Ledesma, Jr.
Kamakailan ay iniulat ng Department of Health (DOH) ang pagtaas ng mga impeksyon sa HIV. Sa pinakahuling bilang ng kaso ng HIV/AIDS, iniulat ng DOH na 79 na Pilipinong nasa edad 10 hanggang 19 taong gulang at pitong batang wala pang 10 taong gulang ang na-diagnose na may HIV noong Enero 2023 lamang.
Samantala, batay sa bilang ng HIV/AIDS noong Disyembre 2022 ng health department, mayroong kabuuang 14,970 bagong kaso ng HIV ang natukoy mula Enero hanggang Disyembre nitong nagdaang taon 2022. Ang bilang noong 2022, sabi ng DOH, ay 2,631 na kaso na higit sa 12,339 na kaso na naitala noong 2021 na may katumbas na 21 porsiyentong pagtaas.
“As of the end of 2022, PhilHealth has paid 15,191 claims from HIV treatment facilities, equivalent to 0.11 percent of the total claims count for the year, amounting to ₱108,463,468,” ani Ledesma.
Ayon kay Ledesma, noong Pebrero ng taong ito, mayroon nang 103 government at 44 na private HIV treatment facilities na accredited ng PhilHealth para sa outpatient HIV/AIDS treatment.
“Prevention is still the best medicine because there is still no cure for the disease,” paalala ni Ledesma sa publiko na habang ang outpatient HIV/AIDS treatments ay sakop ng PhilHealth.
“Prevention is crucial to help slow the spread of the virus and reduce the risk of transmission thereby protecting individuals from infection and ultimately saving lives,” dagdag pa nito.
