Pangasinan: A total of 42 government facilities and private establishments in Pangasinan are now accredited by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) for the GAMOT (Guaranteed and Accessible Medications for Outpatient Treatment) program. In an interview Friday, PhilHealth Ilocos Region public affairs unit head Joseph Manuel said PhilHealth members can now avail of generic medicines indicated in their prescription from accredited YAKAP health facilities.
According to Philippines News Agency, GAMOT is part of the YAKAP (Yaman ng Kalusugan Program), where registered members and their dependents can withdraw prescribed medicines up to PHP20,000. The program covers 75 types of outpatient medicines, including those for chronic conditions and maintenance. 'It is designed to reduce out-of-pocket expenses for common illnesses like diabetes and hypertension,' Manuel stated.
To avail of the program, members should first register at an accredited YAKAP health facility. 'There should be a consultation with a YAKAP accredited doctor from the facility to obtain a prescription. They would not be able to avail the GAMOT program if the prescription is not from a YAKAP facility,' he noted.
To date, there are 74 accredited GAMOT providers in the Ilocos Region, of which 50 are private establishments and 24 are government facilities, according to PhilHealth Ilocos Regional Vice President Dennis Adre. Meanwhile, there are 199 accredited YAKAP health facilities in the region, 89 of which are in Pangasinan.
Adre commended the Pangasinan provincial government under Governor Ramon Guico III for its efforts to expand the enrollment of Pangasinenses to the YAKAP program, even providing incentives to encourage the residents to enroll and avail of PhilHealth's program. Through these efforts, 1.5 million of the province's 3.1 million population are now enrolled in YAKAP as of last year, according to PhilHealth.
"As a commitment of the province, we support fully the YAKAP program and we will exert all of our effort to support and be part of the GAMOT program," Guico said in a separate interview. Meanwhile, PhilHealth also provided YAKAP services to employees and mallgoers as part of Labor's Day celebration at SM City Rosales.
Anna Linda Reinoso, a sanitary inspector at the Eastern Pangasinan District Hospital in Tayug, expressed gratitude for the program as she was able to avail of free consultation and medicine. "I was able to avail my one-month maintenance medication for my hypertension. I am so thankful," she shared.
