{"id":6356,"date":"2026-05-14T13:22:33","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T05:22:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/?p=6356"},"modified":"2026-06-04T14:57:46","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T06:57:46","slug":"comprehensive-primary-care-philhealth-benefits-for-the-filipino-people-ngayon-na-perspective-study-on-the-universal-health-care-law-implementation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/?p=6356","title":{"rendered":"Comprehensive Primary Care PhilHealth Benefits for the Filipino People. Ngayon Na! Perspective Study on the Universal Health Care Law Implementation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">Ramon Pedro P. Paterno, Manuel M. Dayrit, Alvin Valeriano Marcelo, Emerito Jose Faraon, Anthony Rosendo Faraon, Ernesto Gregorio, Jr., Ricardo P. Ramos, Fely Marilyn Lorenzo, Leizel Lagrada, Cecilia S. Acuin, Adrienne Natalie Ebillo, Ernesto O. Domingo<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.57043\/transnastphl.2026.6356\">https:\/\/doi.org\/10.57043\/transnastphl.2026.6356<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p><strong>Abstract<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The implementation of the Universal Health Care Law in the Philippines has significantly stalled, with health financing and service coverage remaining heavily skewed toward expensive hospital-based care rather than costeffective primary care. Despite increased government spending on health, out-of-pocket health expenditures remain high at 43 percent. Even with PhilHealth\u2019s Konsulta (recently rebranded as YAKAP), primary care utilization remains strikingly low. To jump-start UHC implementation, we assert that the strategic way forward is the immediate rollout of a comprehensive primary care services package. The way to do this was proposed during the 2013 DOH KP assessment, six years before the enactment of the UHC Law. All we need now is for the DOH and PHIC to have the political will to implement it. And the Filipino people, having experienced how their primary care needs have been met comprehensively and compassionately, consistent with health as a right rather than a politicized ayuda [assistance], will now demand the same quality care at all levels of the health system and call for UHC Ngayon Na [Right Now]!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Keywords<\/h5>\n\n\n<div class=\"taxonomy-post_tag wp-block-post-terms\"><a href=\"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/?tag=health-financing\" rel=\"tag\">health financing<\/a><span class=\"wp-block-post-terms__separator\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/?tag=primary-care\" rel=\"tag\">primary care<\/a><span class=\"wp-block-post-terms__separator\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/?tag=social-health-insurance\" rel=\"tag\">social health insurance<\/a><span class=\"wp-block-post-terms__separator\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/?tag=universal-health-care\" rel=\"tag\">universal health care<\/a><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div data-wp-interactive=\"core\/file\" class=\"wp-block-file\"><object data-wp-bind--hidden=\"!state.hasPdfPreview\"  class=\"wp-block-file__embed\" data=\"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/TNP-2026_48_05_MS-25-033_RP-Paterno-et-al_Comprehensive-Primary-Care-PhilHealth-Benefits-for-the-Filipino-People.pdf\" type=\"application\/pdf\" style=\"width:100%;height:1090px\" aria-label=\"Embed of TNP 2026_48_05_MS 25-033_RP Paterno et al_Comprehensive Primary Care PhilHealth Benefits for the Filipino People.\"><\/object><a id=\"wp-block-file--media-f26d1567-a6a4-4cb9-82c9-5d29935e4fed\" href=\"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/TNP-2026_48_05_MS-25-033_RP-Paterno-et-al_Comprehensive-Primary-Care-PhilHealth-Benefits-for-the-Filipino-People.pdf\">TNP 2026_48_05_MS 25-033_RP Paterno et al_Comprehensive Primary Care PhilHealth Benefits for the Filipino People<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/TNP-2026_48_05_MS-25-033_RP-Paterno-et-al_Comprehensive-Primary-Care-PhilHealth-Benefits-for-the-Filipino-People.pdf\" class=\"wp-block-file__button wp-element-button\" download aria-describedby=\"wp-block-file--media-f26d1567-a6a4-4cb9-82c9-5d29935e4fed\">Download<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ramon Pedro P. Paterno, Manuel M. Dayrit, Alvin Valeriano Marcelo, Emerito Jose Faraon, Anthony    Rosendo Faraon, Ernesto Gregorio, Jr., Ricardo P. Ramos, Fely Marilyn Lorenzo, Leizel Lagrada, Cecilia S. Acuin, Adrienne Natalie Ebillo, Ernesto O. Domingo<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1194],"tags":[1208,1210,1209,63],"class_list":{"0":"post-6356","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-2026-perspective","7":"tag-health-financing","8":"tag-primary-care","9":"tag-social-health-insurance","10":"tag-universal-health-care","11":"czr-hentry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6356"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6356"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6356\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6407,"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6356\/revisions\/6407"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6356"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6356"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/transactions.nast.ph\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6356"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}