Filipinos face higher health costs over COVID-19 precautions, says ex-health chief
MANILA — Filipinos are now facing higher health care costs as hospitals and health professionals spend more on protective equipment, a former health secretary said on Wednesday.
“Kaya medyo nagmamahal ang health care cost kasi kahit 'yung gamit ng PPE… china-charge ng doktor o health workers sa pasyente,” said Dr. Paulyn Rosell-Ubial, a former Department of Health secretary, at a virtual forum organized by Citizens’ Urgent Response to End COVID-19 (CURE COVID).
(The reason why health care cost has increased is because the personal protective equipment…is also being charged by the doctor or health workers to the patients.)
Ubial pointed out that the cost of ambulance transfer has increased from P5,000 to P12,000 as hospitals incorporate the cost of disinfection and PPEs for the 3 people manning the vehicle.
She said the same considerations are seen in health centers and other health facilities where the cost of using PPEs will continue to be a problem.
“This will be part of our new normal,” Ubial said in Filipino, explaining how some clinics have opted to not only buy disinfection solutions but also equipment such as UV light lamps.
“Dati nang mahal ang dentists, lalong mamahal pa dahil sa mga gadgets na ito,” she said, recalling discussions with friends who bought equipment that sanitized and prevented the formation of aerosol, or the suspension of droplets in air.
(Dental services are already expensive and it will be even more expensive with these gadgets.)
Studies have shown that the coronavirus could spread through the air if it becomes aerosol in form through equipment used in health care settings.
Ubial said the government would also be spending more on the hiring of health workers if the “new normal” would require them to visit patients in their houses for services such as immunization.
“I don’t know if government can support the new normal where services are offered house-to-house,” she said.
Ubial pointed out that even before the pandemic, the government already had limited resources and manpower when it comes to health.
“Mas lalong napalala ng community quarantine ang situation. Mas marami ka nang health workers na kailangan,” she said.
(The community quarantine worsened the situation. We now need more health workers.)
During the CURE Covid forum, a mother shared how she had to spend on private health care to have her child immunized because the village health center was closed.
Not all local government units have been able to keep up with the immunization program even when other cities have been able to send health workers on house-to-house check-ins with residents.
Dr. Julie Caguiat of the Coalition for People’s Right to Health said during the same forum that many non-COVID patients have also not been able to get the health care they needed. She said some doctors told them about how some severely ill patients died because they were unable to get help from hospitals which are now focused on COVID-19 cases.
“For many patients na kung before COVID ay di na makaka-access. Sa tingin namin maraming madi-disenfranchise na patients,” Caguiat said.
(Many patients were already unable to access health care before COVID. We think a lot of them will now be disenfranchised.)
Ubial said it would now be a challenge for the government to implement the Universal Health Care Law, which only had its implementing rules approved October last year.
“Wala pang 6 na buwan nung nagumpisa tayo ng enhanced community quarantine. Hindi pa natin nararamdaman ang effect and yet na-challenge na 'yung ating concept ng universal health care,” she said.
(It has not been even 6 months when we started the enhanced community quarantine. We haven’t felt the effects and now we’re already challenging the concept of universal health care.)
Ubial also pointed out that the cost of PPEs was not included in the 2020 government budget.
She said the “new normal” should be expected to persist until after the pandemic is over. She pointed out that it took 2 years for the world to normalize after the Spanish Flu pandemic in 1918.
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