By PNA and U.S. News Agency / Asian

The Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth-Calabarzon) launched Friday a new set of enhanced benefits through its Primary Care Benefits I (PCB I) Package to ensure improving financial risk protection of its members.

PhilHealth-Calabarzon senior vice president Ernesto Beltran said it allows primary health care providers greater flexibility in the range of services they can offer to enlisted PhilHealth clients.

He said included in the PCB I Package are primary benefits such as consultations, regular blood pressure monitoring and health promotion like education on breastfeeding, counseling on lifestyle modification and lessening smoking.

According to Beltran, medicines for common diseases like asthma and acute gastroenteritis (AGE) with mild or no dehydration, upper respiratory tract infection/pneumonia, and urinary tract infection are also included and expected to be provided in the package.

He added that also available are diagnostic services such as complete blood count, urinalysis, sputum microscopy, fasting blood sugar, lipid profile and chest x-ray.

The PhilHealth senior vice president said the new benefits will be available initially to members under the Sponsored, Organized Groups and Overseas Workers Program and to their qualified dependents.

He said that availment of the PCB I benefits entails the assignment of Sangguniang Panlalawigan or Sangguniang Panglungsod (SP) members to designated rural health units (RHUs), health centers (HCs) or outpatient departments (OPDs) of government hospitals nearest them, while OG and OWP members may choose their PCB I providers from the list of government hospitals that provide these services.

Meanwhile,Mayor Arlene B. Arcillas, guest of honor and speaker, said she promotes the PhilHealth’s health care services, adding that the city of Santa Rosa was the first in Region 4A to endorse sponsorship of enrolles and it now boasts of 17,000 members.

The lady mayor said the “PhilHealth ng masa” program will always be institutionalized in the City of Santa Rosa.”

During the same occasion, PhilHealth turned over to the Santa Rosa City government of P608,250 to be used for the 2,433 enrollees’ per family payment rate for January-June 2012 and for the improvement of health facilities in the city.

A ceremonial distribution of ID cards to local sponsored program enrollees and national sponsored enrollees was also done during the launching ceremonies.

Officials and personnel of PhilHealth 4A led by Senior Vice President Ernesto V. Beltran and Vice President Alberto C. Manduriao, Eloisa B. Tagbo, Philhealth-Calamba local health insurance office head (LHIO); Arturo C. Ardiente, OIC, Field Office Operations Division; and Dr. Edwin Orpina along with 165 PhilHealth coordinators and enrollees were present during the launching ceremonies.