LA TRINIDAD, Benguet September 02 – The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) slapped a 90-day suspension to the accreditation of the Benguet General Hospital (BeGH) because of an administrative infraction that happened over a decade ago.
The hospital’s PhilHealth accreditation will be suspended from September 01 to November 29, 2022 where there will be no paid claims for confinements of patients in the facility shall be received, processed and paid by the State insurance corporation.
However, during the said period, all services of the health facility shall still be available for patients but the same will not be processed and paid by PhilHealth.
Last March, Rep. Eric Yap criticized the Board of Directors of the State insurance corporation for its untimely decision to implement the suspension of accreditation of the hospital fir a simple administrative offense that happened over a decade ago.
On December 10, 2020, BeGH received an order from PhilHealth granting the issuance of a writ of execution of the decision in a complaint dated October 18, 2011 that meted penalties of fines and suspension of accreditation for 3 months supposedly starting March 15, 2021.
Congressman Yap branded the implementation of the suspension of accreditation of the health facility as unjust and definitely a major setback for the effective and efficient delivery of health care services to the people, especially at this time of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Benguet lawmaker had been burning lines and exerting all efforts necessary since the issuance in December last year for the recall of the said controversial and questionable order.
BeGH officials disclosed that the 3-month suspension of accreditation of the hospital by the PhilHealth will translate to will translate to financial losses estimated to be more or less P14 million monthly and will severely affect the effective and efficient delivery of quality health care services to the people of Benguet and those coming from other nearby provinces in the Cordillera and the Ilocos regions.
Because of the prodding of the lawmaker, the PhilHealth Board of Directors decided to defer the implementation of the suspension of accreditation of BeGH in consideration to the congressman’s appeal for them to indefinitely defer the said questioned order.
Congressman Yap is also seeking for the re-nationalization of the BeGH to allo0w the health department to administer, manage and operate the health facility for the increase in its bed capacity, provision of additional units of health equipment and establishment of more facilities that will cater to critical cases.
At present, the BeGh is being managed and operated by the provincial government where bulk of the province’s funds is allocated for the maintenance and continuous operation of the said health facility.
Yap said that the re-nationalization of BeGH will free the provincial government in providing for the maintenance and operation of the hospital and for the province to use the said funds for other high impact development projects beneficial for the welfare of the people.
