The Azanza administration’s announcement that it would provide healthcare insurance to employees of the provincial government and the 11 municipal LGUs in the province is a welcome development.
This would be in addition to benefits already in place for permanent government workers under PhilHealth as well as the annual medical allowance of P7,000 granted by DBM.
According to the governor, those working at the Captol would get a maximum benefit of P80,000 for each ailment every year while municipal LGU workers will get P40,000 in yearly benefits.
The benefits to be granted under the Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) include inpatient and outpatient services, emergency care, laboratory and diagnostic procedures, annual physical examination, and coverage for pre-existing conditions.
In asking the Sangguniang Panlalawigan to pass the SALUD Catanduanes Provincial Healthcare Insurance Program Ordinance of 2026, Gov. Patrick Alain T. Azanza said P14 million has already been allocated for the implementation of the program in the 2026 provincial budget.
All the provincial board has to do is approve the ordinance so that the Provincial Bids and Awards ommittee can proceed with the procurement of the services to be provided by the winning HMO company.
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Almost in the same week that the announcement was made, the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) disclosed that it will soon offer zero-interest HMO financing for its 200,000 members who are government workers.
GSIS President and General Manager Wick Veloso signed its first Ginhawa Health Assistance Loan (G-HEALTH) partnership with Maxicare Healthcare Corp. President and Chief Executive Officer Christian Argos.
The deal will make use of the P7,000 Medical Allowance granted under Executive Orders Nos. 64 and 95 to allow the civil servant to enroll in health insurance without the burden of paying the premium in one lump sum.
Under the proposed program, members may browse, compare, and enroll in health insurance packages offered by accredited Health Insurance Providers (HIPs) through the GSIS Touch mobile application. Once a member selects a preferred plan, GSIS will finance the insurance premium through a 0% interest loan, allowing the cost to be spread over 12 monthly installments.
The government pension fund has yet to reveal the specific packages to be offered by Maxicare
But the cheapest plan for individuals is the Bronze Plan covering room and board (ward), maximum benefit limit of P70,000 and access to all affiliated hospitals and clinics.
There are packages for MSMEs depending on the number of workers as well as for corporate entities, including probably LGUs.
The benefit limit of P70,000 is the lowest available in the MSME plans, with the usual access to all Maxicare-affiliated hospitals.
The plan covers inpatient care, outpatient care, emergency care, preventive care, and other benefits. The beneficiary has the option to include annual checkups, dental care, group life insurance, daily hospital cash benefit, critical illness benefit, and maximum benefit limit booster.
It would be good to compare the offer of the Capitol’s HMO provider with that of the GSIS.
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THE HORSE. A man is sitting quietly reading his paper one morning, peacefully enjoying himself, when his wife sneaks up behind him and whacks him on the back of his head with a huge black frying pan.
“What was that for?” asks the man.
“What as that piece of paper in your pants pocket with the name Marylou written on it?”
“Oh honey. Don’t you remember two weeks ago when I went to the horse races? Marylou was the name of one of the horses I bet on.”
The wife seems satisfied and goes off to work, feeling a bit sheepish.
Three days later the man is once again sitting in his chair reading and the wife repeats the frying-pan swatting.
“What’s that for this time?” he asks.
“Your horse called,” says his wife.