Who Wins and Who Loses from PhilHealth? Cost and Benefit Incidence of Social Health Insurance in a Lifecycle Perspective

Abstract

This paper used incidence analysis to examine the financial costs and benefits of the National Health Insurance Program (NHIP) through the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), which accrue to different ages and socioeconomic classes. Based on the study’s findings, premium contributions to and benefit payments by PhilHealth are pro-poor, which means that poor individuals receive more benefits while contributing less to PhilHealth. Throughout an average Filipino’s lifetime, the NHIP is estimated to subsidize about 40 centavos worth of health care for every peso an individual contributes directly or indirectly as a premium to PhilHealth.