ST. LUKE’S Medical Center-Global City has allocated 53 beds for Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) members covered by the government’s No Balance Billing program, widening access to specialized treatment in a private hospital.

PhilHealth and St. Luke’s signed a memorandum of agreement on Tuesday to strengthen the implementation of the government’s No Co-Payment Policy.

“So, they have 53 beds allocated for the No Balance Billing, intended for patients requiring specialized treatments that are available in our public hospitals but who would otherwise have to wait due to patient backlogs,” PhilHealth President and Chief Executive Officer Beverly Lorraine C. Ho told reporters in Filipino after the signing ceremony.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. urged more private hospitals to take part in efforts to lower patients’ out-of-pocket medical expenses.

“By joining this effort, St. Luke’s also sends an important message: that quality care in leading private hospitals can be made more accessible to qualified PhilHealth members, and that both government and the private sector have a role in making universal healthcare work,” Mr. Marcos said during the ceremony at the hospital’s branch in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.

Ms. Ho said eligibility under the arrangement will be limited to PhilHealth members and selected cases that will be assessed under the program.

Under PhilHealth’s existing policy, patients admitted to basic or ward accommodations in accredited public and private health facilities should not be charged co-payments for essential health services. The latest agreement extends that principle into a private hospital setting, while keeping the program tied to specific cases rather than all admissions.

Ms. Ho said PhilHealth estimates that about 1.2 million families experience catastrophic health spending each year, which can lead to delayed treatment and higher medical costs as illnesses worsen.

“This is precisely the cycle the Universal Health Care law was designed to break, to guarantee every Filipino access to needed care, not when they can afford it, not when it’s critical, but when they need it,” she said in a speech.

Mr. Marcos said the government is expanding private hospital participation in its healthcare programs to reduce patients’ medical expenses.

He said the government has also expanded zero-balance billing in Department of Health hospitals, electronic processing of medical assistance to indigent and financially incapacitated patients, the PhilHealth YAKAP primary care program and the GAMOT outpatient medicine program.

Ms. Ho said household out-of-pocket payments accounted for 45% of health spending when Mr. Marcos began his term and had fallen to 41% by the end of 2025.

PhilHealth is also planning to pilot a global budget payment program in the coming months. Under the plan, hospitals that support expanded No Balance Billing options and predictable co-payments could receive payments upfront, Ms. Ho said.

The agency will work with participating hospitals on cost analysis, shadow billing and monitoring of quality and health outcomes, she said.

The agreement was signed by Ms. Ho and Saint Luke’s President and Chief Executive Officer Dennis P. Serrano. — Erika Mae P. Sinaking