Manila: The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) on Thursday reminded hospitals and health facilities to submit good claims to receive payments due for their services. In a public advisory, the state insurer announced that its national turnaround time (TAT) on good claims for 2024 has improved to 24 days from 34 days in 2023.

According to Philippines News Agency, this improvement highlights PhilHealth's ongoing commitment to processing and payment of good claims ahead of the prescribed 60 days TAT. Good claims are defined as those without deficiencies and compliant with all pertinent policies and requirements of the National Health Insurance Program and the Universal Health Care.

PhilHealth reported an increase in benefit payouts for the calendar year 2024 by 22.71 percent, from PHP119 billion in 2023 to PHP165 billion. However, approximately 5.3 percent of claims, estimated to cost around PHP10 billion, were either denied or returned to hospitals due to deficiencies or violations of existing policies and guidelines.

PhilHealth President and Chief Executive Officer Edwin Mercado announced last week that the state insurer will commence reprocessing 1.1 million denied claims amounting to PHP8.8 billion, spanning from Dec. 1, 2018, to Dec. 31, 2024. Health facilities are encouraged to submit good claims earlier than the prescribed 60-day period to further expedite and ensure the early release of payments.

PhilHealth has pledged to work closely with healthcare providers and other partners through continuous reconciliation efforts to maintain quality service and improve financial support value for its members.