State health insurer PhilHealth and the Department of Information and Communication Technology recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate and work on a synchronized and well-coordinated ICT system to promote and ensure integration, interoperability and interconnection between their systems and applications.

The agreement is expected to further boost health insurance services to the 111 million Filipinos in the country and abroad.

Under the partnership, the DICT will assess and evaluate PhilHealth’s current applications and systems and provide recommendations and strategies for the improvement of its ICT system. It will also identify, develop and enhance the state health insurer’s existing systems and applications to ensure the effective and efficient delivery of government services.

“We couldn’t be happier with this agreement with DICT. Maraming proseso at serbisyo ang PhilHealth na kailangan ng computerization at digitalization upang lalong maging mabilis at kasiya-siya sa lahat ng Filipino. Isa ito sa mga plano na inilahad namin kay President Bongbong Marcos Jr.. Hindi namin bibiguin ang Pangulo at ang lahat ng kababayan natin”, PhilHealth Chief Emmanuel R. Ledesma, Jr. said during simple rites in Pasay City.

Ledesma also thanked the DICT team led by Secretary Ivan John Uy and Undersecretary David Almirol Jr. for their support of PhilHealth’s digital transformation plan.

Uy declared the agreement “a milestone in terms of e-governance” as this will address the long standing challenge of digitalizing public health care. Such partnership fortifies the common aspiration of providing better services to the Filipino people by allowing them to access their PhilHealth benefits easily, seamlessly and pleasantly, he added.