I’m a typical dad. When we pull up to something interesting, I want to point it out to my kids and maybe explain it. Sometimes they want to hear it and sometimes they don’t.
We’ve visited a number of cathedrals since we’ve been here in Europe. They’re pretty amazing.
This time I was explaining to my kids what a confessional booth is.
My son took a picture to show evidence of me explaining things.
Today, after we walked over a real draw bridge (they’ve never seen one before) I pointed it out and they made fun of me for the rest of the day.
That’s the price I pay for being a good dad and explaining things. I never know what they’re going to like and what they won’t.
Here’s an explainer about PhilHealth.
If one of the benefits you’re paying for is your OFS Philhealth contributions, this is something you need to know.
Philhealth (Philippine socialized medicine) just sent out an advisory announcing an increase in their premiums for the year 2022. They just announced it but the rate hike is retroactive.
https://www.philhealth.gov.ph/advisories/2022/adv2022-0010.pdf
For the past few years, the minimum contribution for Philhealth has been Php300 ($5.75) per month. Philhealth set that as a minimum assuming that most Filipinos have a monthly salary of Php10,000 ($191) and at a 3% premium. Now, the rate is at 4% or P400 minimum. That’s an additional Php100 ($2).
Why is this happening?
Under the Universal Health Care Law of the Philippines, that rate should be at around 5%. https://www.philhealth.gov.ph/about_us/UHC-IRR_Signed.pdf
For the longest time, the premiums were around 2% and the Philippine government was having a hard time covering hospitalization claims. So what the government did was introduce the increases gradually. They did an increase back in 2019, raising the premium rate from 2.5% to 3%. The increase was supposed to happen every year but was delayed for 2 years due to the pandemic.
Again, the rate hike is retroactive. This means that if your OFS paid their Philhealth contributions early, they need to pay the balance so their contributions would be credited. They also need to pay the difference for the previous months’ contribution starting with January 2022.
This could be a big burden. Ask your OFS about it.
John
I see the “minimum”…is the 4% paid on “ALL” wages, or is there a calculator for this? If someone is paid Php50,000 or Php100,000 is the healthcare 4% of those numbers?
If someone is paid Php50,000 or Php100,000 is the healthcare 4% of those numbers? – Yes. The 4% applies to all wages.
But the good thing about Philhealth is that they’re pretty lenient. You can still get coverage if you pay at least P400 per month. That’s the minimum contribution required.