PhilHealth expands maternity benefit

MANILA, Philippines — Maternity benefits provided by state-run Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) would be increased beginning today, President Marcos announced as he acknowledged the high costs of childbirth that place mothers at risk.

PhilHealth coverage for normal delivery will be raised to P29,000 from P9,750, while the coverage for cesarean section will increase to between P58,000 and P62,000 from P37,000.

Prenatal care coverage will also be expanded from to eight from four check-ups and will already include vaccines and laboratory tests. PhilHealth will also cover three postnatal follow-up visits.

“Our goal is simple. To ensure that each mother will be able to deliver her child safely and will not worry about where to get money to settle the bills. We do not want any life to be placed at risk just because of lack of money,” Marcos said.