OOPS

SPEECH # 7

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 OOPS…HEALTH ECONOMICS 101

WHAT IS YOUR IDEA OF GOOD HEALTH?  BEING IN TIPTOP SHAPE? HAVING A BUFF OR SEXY BODY?  FEELING GOOD?  NORMAL LAB TESTS? NOT GETTING THE H1N1?  YEAH…THESE ARE ALL CORRECT …BUT IN A SURVEY DONE SOMETIME AGO, FILIPINOS EQUATED GOOD HEALTH WITH TWO THINGS: AVAILABILITY OF MEDICINES, AND BEING ABLE TO PAY THEIR MEDICAL BILLS.

AVAILABILITY OF MEDICINES IS VERY MUCH UNDERSTANDABLE.  I WILL FOCUS ON US BEING ABLE TO PAY OUR MEDICAL BILLS.

THE LIKELIHOOD OF HAVING APPENDICITIS IN A LIFETIME IS 7 PERCENT.  AT PRESENT, IF ONE UNDERGOES APPENDECTOMY, THE OPERATION AND HOSPITALIZATION WILL COST YOU AROUND P 70,000.  FOR FILIPINO WOMEN, THE LIKELIHOOD OF HAVING BREAST CANCER IN A LIFETIME IS 12 PERCENT.  AFTER BEING DIAGNOSED, EXPENSES RUN IN THE RANGE OF P 1.5 MILLION FOR THE FIRST YEAR, THEN P 120,000 A YEAR FOR THE FIRST 4 YEARS AND THIS STILL EXCLUDES DOCTORS’ PROFESSIONAL FEES.

TO FILIPINOS WITH AVERAGE MONTHLY INCOME, THIS CAN BE BIG PROBLEM.  BUT FOR OUR POOR COUNTERPARTS, THE SCENARIO COULD BE NOTHING SHORT OF A CATASTROPHE!  FACED WITH THE DILEMMA OF KNOWING THAT YOU HAVE A CERTAIN CONDITION AND THAT YOU WILL BE SPENDING A CERTAIN AMOUNT FOR A CERTAIN PROCEDURE, THE EASY CHOICE WOULD BE: GETTING UNHEALTHY OR BECOMING POORER. 

REALITY.  WE LACK THE MEANS TO PAY FOR OUR MEDICAL BILLS.  SOLUTION. SOMETHING MUST BE DONE BY THE STATE.

THE GOVERNMENT GAVE US PHILHEALTH IN 1995.  THINK OF IT AS A BIG FINANCING ARM OF HEALTH IN THE COUNTRY.  JUST AS THERE IS CAR FINANCING, HOUSE FINANCING, THERE IS ALSO HEALTH FINANCING.  IT AIMS TO ACHIEVE UNIVERSAL COVERAGE. MEANING TO SAY 100% OF FILIPINOS SHOULD BENEFIT FROM IT.  THE PHILHEALTH CARD BEING MORE THAN JUST A CARD—A DISCOUNT CARD, A POLITICAL CARD… 

A STUDY REVEALED THAT ONLY 85% OF THE POPULATION IS COVERED BY PHILHEALTH.  MUCH MORE, IT COVERS ONLY 25% OF YOUR TOTAL EXPENDITURES.  FOR EXAMPLE, IF YOU GET A HOSPITAL BILL OF P 10,000, THE MOST THAT PHILHEALTH CAN HELP YOU WITH IS P 2,500.  THE REMAINDER OF THE AMOUNT IS THE SO-CALLED OOPS OR OUT OF POCKET SCHEME.  OR SIMPLY, THE MONEY THAT YOU WILL HAVE TO SHELL OUT FOR YOUR HEALTH.   IF YOU HAVE THE MONEY…

IN THE PHILIPPINE NATIONAL HEALTH ACCOUNTS OF 2005, A STUDY THAT DETERMINED HOW MUCH WAS BEING SPENT FOR HEALTH BY WHOM, SHOWED THAT 60% WAS PAID THROUGH OOPS, ROUGHLY 20% EACH CONTRIBUTED BY THE GOVERNMENT AND PHILHEALTH.  IN CONCLUSION, MAJORITY OF EXPENSES WAS PAID FROM OUR OWN POCKETS.  THE SITUATION OF THOSE WITHOUT MONEY IS THE SORRY SCENARIO.

THIS IS BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT DOESN’T HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO SPEND.  IT SPENDS ONLY 2% FROM THE TOTAL BUDGET, VERY FAR BELOW THE WORLD STANDARD SET BY THE WHO AT 5%.  IN 2005, THE GOVERNMENT SPENT P 180 B FOR HEALTH.  IS THIS ENOUGH?  NOPE, THIS TRANSLATES TO ONLY P 1,978 PER HEAD PER YEAR.  THIS AMOUNT IS THE COST OF A FINE DINING FOR TWO THAT A RICH GUY CAN EASILY PAY, AND HALF THE AMOUNT OF THE CHEAPEST CELLPHONE IN THE MARKET.  THIS COST IS TOO LOW TO HAVE SOME VALUE.

THIS IS REALLY THE CHALLENGE FOR THE NEW ADMINISTRATION NOW.  PRES. NOYNOY SAID IN HIS SPEECH THAT HE WILL WORK TO HAVE UNIVERSAL HEALTH COVERAGE IN 3 YEARS.  MOST PROBABLY, AT THE RATE WE ARE GOING, THIS WILL NOT MATERIALIZE.

BUT I HAVE A GOOD NEWS. SPENDING FOR HEALTH IS NOT ALL THERE IS TO HAVING GOOD HEALTH. THINK OF THE US, WHICH SPENDS THE MOST FOR HEALTH THE WORKD OVER, WITH BAD HEALTH OUTCOMES.  THEY ARE THE MOST OBESE PERSONS ON EARTH, AND THEY HAVE GENERALLY SHORTER LIFESPANS THAN THEIR COUNTERPART RICH NATIONS. ON THE OTHER HAND, THINK OF CUBA, A POOR SOUTH AMERICAN NATION WITH LOW SPENDING ON HEALTH BUT WITH GOOD HEALTH OUTCOMES.  THEY HAVE LOW MORTALITY RATES AND LONG LIFESPANS. 

REALITY. CHANGING OUR PARADIGM FROM CURATIVE TO PREVENTIVE IS THE WAY TO GO.  SOLUTION.  PEOPLE MUST DO SOMETHING ABOUT THEIR OWN HEALTH.  HAVING THE RIGHT MINDSET, EATING THE RIGHT FOODS, DOING THE RIGHT THINGS-EXERCISE, REGULAR CHECK-UPS..ARE PRICELESS SOLUTIONS THAT CAN GIVE US GOOD HEALTH.

THE SAYING, “AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION IS WORTH MORE THAN A POUND OF CURE,” IS VERY CORRECT, ESPECIALLY IF MONEY IS CONCERNED.

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