The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) on Tuesday launched in Cebu its milestone program, Guaranteed and Accessible Medications for Outpatient Treatment (GAMOT).

Department of Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said GAMOT will strengthen primary care and expand access to medicines in Central Visayas.

“This is PhilHealth’s expanded outpatient medicines benefit designed to make essential medications more accessible and affordable for members,” he said.

Recognizing that the cost of medicines remains one of the leading causes of out-of-pocket health spending, GAMOT aims to address this concern by ensuring coverage for essential drugs used in managing common and chronic illnesses.

Cebu Governor Pamela Baricuatro welcomed the launch of GAMOT, noting that all four provincial hospitals and 12 district hospitals in Cebu will apply for accreditation and dispense medicines through their existing pharmacies.

“We are thankful that the national government chose Cebu as the first province to avail of the program,” she told the Daily Tribune.

Under the program, PhilHealth’s GAMOT will cover 75 essential medicines, significantly expanding previous outpatient drug benefits. It provides an annual benefit limit of up to P20,000 per member and per dependent.

Covered medicines include those prescribed for common acute and chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, asthma and other respiratory diseases, infections, and selected cardiovascular and neurologic conditions.