CEBU CITY, Cebu (PIA) –The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) has substantially enhanced its Z Benefit Package for Peritoneal Dialysis (PD) up to 1.2M starting January 2025.
The enhanced PD package covers different modalities based on age, this time with separate packages for adult and pediatric patients.
For adults, PhilHealth pays for Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis (CAPD), and both CAPD and Automated Peritoneal Dialysis (APD) for younger patients.
For adult patients, coverage could either be P389,640 or P510,140, depending on the PD solutions needed by a patient per day.
The package used to be at P270,000 per year.
Meanwhile, benefits for pediatric patients under CAPD range from P510,000 to P765,210, while coverage for APD ranges from P763,000 to P1.2 million.
According to the National Kidney and Transplant Institute, peritoneal dialysis (PD) is a form of renal replacement therapy (RRT) where the patient’s own peritoneal membrane or lining of abdominal organs and body surfaces within the abdominal cavity is used as an artificial kidney.
“We want to encourage the availment of peritoneal dialysis as a first line modality treatment for patients with Chronic Kidney Disease Stage 5,” said PhilHealth President and CEO Emmanuel R. Ledesma, Jr.
“PhilHealth wants to push this as an option apart from hemodialysis, not just to give autonomy and flexibility to our members in choosing the treatment modality, but also to promote quality of life and mobility of patients,” he added.
To date, Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) in Cebu City and Cebu South Medical Center in Talisay City are the contracted Z Benefit Providers for peritoneal dialysis in Central Visayas.
Z benefit package
Florence Ann Manggaron, 34, is grateful to Philhealth as she has benefited from the Z benefit package when she gave birth to her third child.
“Yung third baby ko ay pre-mature, 34 weeks lang po sya. Ngpapasalamat po akong ng malaki sa Philhealth kasi po wala po akong binayaran, if meron man konting konti lang po. Ngpapasalamat po ako sa Philhealth, sa Z benefits package at sa Gallares Hospital din po dahil sa ginawa nilang kabutihan sa amin,” said Manggaron.
(My third baby was born premature, only 34 weeks. I’m deeply thankful to Philhealth because I did not have to pay anything for my delivery.)
Another mother to benefit from the Z benefits package is Michelle L. Dano, 28, from Cambuak Norte, Sikatuna, Bohol.
Dano was told she would need to prepare P70,000 when she would give birth at the hospital.
“Nahibaw an nako kay naay nidool nako didto sa hospital og ang among bayranan is 70,000 kapin. Unya wala gyud mi nabayran bisag piso tungod sa Z benefits,” she said.
(I already asked the hospital how much it would cost for me to give birth and I was told it would be more than P70,000. However, we did not pay a single piso thanks to the Z benefits.)
“Ang akong mensahe para sa Philhealth nga unta dghan pa matabangan na mga premature babies og magdugay pa ang inyong Z benefits program,” Dano added.
(I hope Philhealth will be able to help more mothers with premature babies and hopefully, the Z benefits program will be around for a long time.)
PhilHealth also pays for exit site infection and peritonitis prevention care as well as ancillary services which include catheter insertion, outpatient treatment of PD-related peritonitis and laboratory, diagnostic tests, and drugs and medicines for both adult and pediatric cases.
According to PhilHealth Circular No. 2024-0036, patients with Chronic Kidney Disease Stage 5 who will avail of this type of RRT shall first be registered in the PhilHealth Dialysis Database and shall comply with existing membership eligibility guidelines.
Patients shall also adhere to the treatment plan, including follow-up visits.
They are strictly prohibited from sharing, selling or distributing PD solutions provided to them.
The enhanced PD Z Benefits are available at any of the 51 contracted PD providers nationwide, the list of which can be viewed at www.philhealth.gov.ph.
This is in line with Pres. Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s assurance of continuous expansion in healthcare benefits despite zero subsidy. (HFG/PIA7 with reports from Philhealth)
