PHILHEALTH AND DEPED FORGE PARTNERSHIP TO ENSURE HEALTH COVERAGE FOR ALL LEARNERS

In a significant step towards ensuring the health and well-being of public school students, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) and the Department of Education (DepEd) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on May 8, 2025 at the Department of Education head office in Pasig City.

The partnership aligns with the mandate of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.’s over-all accessibility of government services to learners, teaching and non-teaching personnel in academic institutions.

Under the agreement, DepEd will adopt mechanisms necessary for PhilHealth registration, transforming schools into health-promoting learning environments and school clinics into efficient providers of primary care. By making sure that all enrolled learners are properly registered with PhilHealth, affordable and quality health services will become more accessible to children.

Moreover, PhilHealth commits to facilitate the registration of not only the learners but also their families to a Konsulta Package Provider for them to access primary care services.

“The future this landmark partnership offers is one with healthier children that will transition to adults with better health-seeking behavior,” said PhilHealth Acting President and CEO Dr. Edwin M. Mercado. This strategic shift towards preventive care for students also aims to improve overall learning and productivity with lesser absences and lower medical costs for children with chronic conditions.

DepEd Secretary Juan Edgardo M. Angara expressed the agency’s support for the initiative, “This is what we envisioned when we passed the Universal Health Care. Importante ay may tiwala ang tao na makakakuha sila ng serbisyo.”

This partnership aligns with the government’s broader goals of achieving Universal Health Care. In ensuring we provide quality healthcare for our children, we set the stage for improving the health and well-being of all Filipinos.