Go lauds expanded PhilHealth maternity benefits, urges better implementation

Senator Bong Go said the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation’s (PhilHealth) expanded maternity benefits should ease financial burdens on Filipino families, especially working mothers needing proper healthcare during pregnancy.

Despite the Universal Health Care Law, many Filipinos still face high hospital bills and other pregnancy-related costs.

Under the new PhilHealth coverage, effective April 30, normal deliveries will rise from P9,750 to P29,000, while cesarean deliveries will increase from P37,000 to P58,000–P62,000. The benefits also include additional prenatal check-ups, increasing from four to eight visits—including vaccines and lab tests—and three postnatal follow-ups.

“This is the time when the people should feel improved medical services. We must help Filipinos, especially mothers, reduce their expenses for healthcare and childbirth,” Go said in Filipino.

Go stressed that expanding benefits must be paired with clear execution and public access to information.

“The benefits available to our fellow citizens should be clear to them. It is not enough that programs exist on paper. People must know about them, feel them, and actually benefit from them,” he added.

The move follows Go’s previous calls for reforms in PhilHealth to make healthcare more accessible and affordable, including lifting the 45-day annual hospitalization limit and expanding coverage to dental services, mental health care, outpatient drugs, diagnostic tests, medical transport, chemotherapy, cardiac care, rehabilitation, and assistive devices.

PhilHealth has also expanded packages for kidney illnesses, pediatric dialysis, and ischemic heart disease.

“The funds of PhilHealth are for the health of Filipinos. They should be used for more benefits, broader services, and greater assistance for patients,” Go said, adding that the initiatives aim to reduce out-of-pocket costs for families.